George Santos Seeks Campaign Donations Days After Fraud, Laundering Charges
NewsweekNov 26, 2022
The Facts
On Wednesday, the Republican-controlled US House of Representatives voted along party lines to refer to the House Ethics Committee a resolution on whether Rep. George Santos (R-NY) should be expelled from office.
The 221-204 vote postpones a vote by the full House, which would have required a two-thirds supermajority to expel Santos.
The Spin
Republican narrative
Santos’s lies were harmless, and like all Americans he has a right to due process on the criminal charges, so there’s no reason for him to go anywhere. Santos didn’t lie any more than Biden or other politicians, but Democrats are coming after him as part of the political witch hunt that’s also led to Trump facing criminal charges.
Democratic narrative
Although Republicans are claiming they’re following due process, what they’re really doing is buying time in order to maintain their slim majority in the House. Ethics investigations are slow, and while this drags on Republicans have a better chance at sticking together with some crucial votes coming up.
