When George Santos nabbed the nomination for New York’s 3rd congressional district, he became the Republican party’s first openly gay congress member. But the Conservative GOP-led hooray for Santos stopped fast: Since admitting to fabricating and distorting significant parts of his biography on the campaign trail, the congressman has found himself mired in major controversy Santos has called the discrepancies—which cover everything from the full extent of his work on Wall Street to which universities he attended—“embellishments.” But a significant slice of his constituents, and a growing number of elected Republican officials, view the reports as something much more troubling.
The drama has become, to some, a reflection of the growing influence of right-wing politics within the Republican party—while others, especially LGBTQ activists, take issue with Santos’s discriminatory views toward major LGBTIA+ issues and concerns, despite identifying as gay himself. Yet many more are still asking: Who is George Santos?
Here’s what we know: Over the last few weeks, emerging reports have continued to muddy the waters of Santos’s past. On Monday the Washington Post published details that appear to link Santos to the “second cousin of a sanctioned Russian oligarch.” A years-long marriage to a woman that ended in 2019 was revealed. Major doubts about Santos’s connections to the Pulse Nightclub shooting cropped up. (He claims to have lost four employees on the tragic night, despite lacking any concrete connections to the victims.) He clarified that when he said he was of Jewish descent, he meant “Jew-ish.” There are also irony-laden anecdotes: A former roommate has accused the embattled congressman of wearing a stolen Burberry scarf ($520) to a pro-Trump, “Stop the Steal” rally.
Last week, local GOP officials for Nassau County, which Santos represents parts of, called on the politician to resign. While numerous Democrats and some House Republicans have issued similar calls, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has not publicly pressured Santos to step down, nor has he harshly condemned Santos’s actions. (Political analysts have hypothesized that McCarthy’s hesitations hinge on the slim Republican majority in the House, and Santos’s potential as a reliable vote.)
“I try to stick by the Constitution. The voters elected him to serve,” McCarthy said last week. “If there is a concern, he has to go through the Ethics [Committee]; let him move through that. But right now, the voters have a voice in the decision. It’s not where people pick and choose based upon what somebody’s press has. So he will continue to serve.”
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