Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., waits for the start of a session in the House chamber on Jan. 10 in Washington. Alex Brandon/Associated Press
U.S. Rep. George Santos vowed Monday he would cooperate with a looming congressional ethics investigation into his lies about his background and major questions about his campaign finances.
Emerging from a morning meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the newly minted New York Republican lawmaker claimed he would finally come clean about the unending string of fibs that have made him a walking political punch line.
“I don’t have anything to hide,” Santos told reporters, who have staked him out on Capitol Hill since he was sworn in this month.
McCarthy confirmed to reporters that he met with Santos but would not say what they discussed.
The GOP speaker has avoided joining calls for Santos to step down, which would force a special election in which Democrats would be favored.
McCarthy had instead suggested that the House Ethics Committee launched a probe, a process that would likely take months and is unlikely to result in anything more than a slap on the wrist.
Santos, a self-styled conservative gay Brazilian immigrant, won an upset victory in the midterm elections in a Democratic-leaning district spanning the North Shore of Long Island and a slice of northeast Queens.
After his win, Santos was exposed for an unending string of brazen lies about his background, education, and even claims of Jewish heritage.
Incoming House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Calif., speaks on the House floor at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 7. Andrew Harnik/Associated Press file
He has refused to answer myriad questions about his campaign finance disclosures, which appear to be riddled with misleading statements or outright lies.
Federal and state authorities are investigating, and Brazilian prosecutors want to talk to him about a bad check scheme of which he denies any knowledge.
But Santos insists he won’t step down and McCarthy, who needs every vote he can get in the nearly evenly divided House, has stood by him so far.
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