We Tried to Call the Top Donors To George Santos’ 2020 Campaign. Many Don’t Seem To Exist.
Mother JonesFEB 22 2023
A spokesperson for US Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) confirmed on Tuesday that he has decided to step down from his House committee assignments to prevent from being a "distraction" amid investigations into his finances and other issues.
Santos, who was set to serve on the Small Business and Science Committees, reportedly expressed his choice at a closed-door GOP gathering on Tuesday and privately to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) a day earlier.
This comes as federal authorities and the House Ethics Committee are probing the origins of $700K the congressman loaned from his consulting company to his 2022 campaign, along with several expenditures that were a penny below the itemization threshold.
Even though casting Santos aside could have made it easier to punish Adam Schiff, Eric Swalwell, and Ilhan Omar, Speaker McCarthy remained professional in his neutral stance on the Santos saga. But now that the New York representative has decided to step down, the GOP has the moral high ground to hold the three Democrat representatives accountable and strip their assignments.
This was likely part of a compromise among House Republicans to persuade those resisting to boot Ilhan Omar from her assignment on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Though the GOP may successfully limit its exposure to claims of hypocrisy, there is still a chance that this indicates another damaging story about Santos is about to break.