George Santos FARNOUSH AMIRI and MICHAEL BALSAMOAssociated Press WASHINGTON — It should be a time of triumph for Republicans ready to take back control of the House in the new Congress this week, but their leaders are struggling with an embarrassing distraction about one of their own: What to do about George Santos?
Weeks after winning a district that helped Republicans secure their razor-thin House majority, the congressman-elect is under investigation in New York after acknowledging he lied about his heritage, education and professional pedigree as he campaigned for office.
Top House Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California and his leadership team have kept silent about Santos, who is set to take the oath of office Tuesday, Jan.
3, even after he publicly admitted to fabricating swaths of his biography. The now-embattled Republican has shown no signs of stepping aside, punting the decision to hold him accountable to his party and to the Congress, where he could quickly face a House ethics committee investigation once sworn into office.