New York Republicans move to expel George Santos from House

Oct. 12—WASHINGTON — A coalition of most but not all of New York's Republican representatives have rallied behind an effort to expel one of their own, George A.D. Santos, Douglaston, after he was charged with another slate of campaign finance crimes.

Santos, the Long Island Republican who has made headlines for his repeated lies about his background, financial status and work history, was charged Tuesday by the Department of Justice with conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering, making false statements, falsification of records, aggravated identity theft and credit card fraud among other counts. It's the second time he's been accused of violating federal election finance laws, but his charges now extend to other fraud and criminal acts.

Federal investigators allege that Santos led multiple criminal schemes before and during his two campaigns for office in 2020 and 2022. Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said in a statement announcing the charges that Santos had stolen the identities of family members and used the credit card information from his political donors to boost his campaign income. His former treasurer has already agreed to a plea deal in federal court, implicating Santos directly in a scheme to embellish his campaign finance reports with fake loans and fake donors in an attempt to earn the support and trust of Long Island Republican leadership.

On Wednesday, New York Reps. Anthony P. D'Esposito R-Island Park, Nicholas J. LaLota R-Bay Shore, Marcus J. Molinaro R-Tivoli, Brandon M. Williams, R-Syracuse, and Michael V. Lawler, R-Pearl River, introduced a resolution in the House to expel Santos from Congress. Of New York's 10 Republican members other than Santos, five have signed onto the resolution.

D'Esposito and LaLota represent districts bordering Santos' 3rd District on Long Island. Rep. Andrew R. Garbarino, R-Sayville, who represents the 2nd District and the remaining portion of Long Island outside of New York City did not sign onto the resolution.

"George Santos' many deceptions coupled with the ever-expanding legal case against him further strengthen my long held belief that he is unfit to serve in Congress, and for that reason I will be sponsoring a resolution to expel George Santos from the House of Representatives," D'Esposito said.

"George Santos is a liar and a fraud with a growing rap sheet," said Molinaro. "I have said and continue to say he should resign. Since he won't I'm supporting a resolution to expel him from Congress."

Santos quickly lost the support of his fellow Republicans after media reports broke early this year that he had falsified much of his professional background. Santos was proven to have lied about which college he went to, what sports he played, what he did for work after college and how much money he made from that work, and more. Santos was also charged with check fraud in Brazil, where he spent some time after college, and has been accused by former friends and roommates of theft and frequent lying.

Santos was elected with the support of his party, including north country Rep. Elise M. Stefanik, Willsboro. For months, Santos' public social media profiles used an image of him posing with Stefanik, and Stefanik had directed campaign donations to Santos through the Republican fundraising platform WinRed. It does not appear that any of those donations were implicated in Santos' alleged fraud, because WinRed does not share payment information with candidates on its platform.

Stefanik did not co-sponsor the resolution as of Thursday afternoon. A spokesperson did not return a request for comment on Thursday.

Upstate Rep. Claudia L. Tenney, Canandaigua, was another New York Republican who didn't add her name to the list calling for Santos to resign. Tenney once swapped $2,000 donations with Santos' campaign, which she did not return when his campaign fell under scrutiny. A spokesperson for her office did not return a request for comment on Thursday,

Western New York Rep. Nicholas A. Langworthy, Jamestown, the former head of the New York Republican Party, also declined to co-sponsor the resolution, although he was named as a co-signer in a post on X, formerly Twitter, from D'Esposito announcing the resolution.