Although Kevin McCarthy had defended George Santos against calls for his resignation, he condemned his conduct and suggested possible consequences for him.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said New York Congressman George Santos will be removed from office if an investigation by the House Ethics Committee determines he violated the law.
The committee’s inquiries began after reports that the New York Republican fabricated part of his history, including his education and background, during his 2022 campaign. He is also under investigation by several federal bodies , state and local.
The speaker of the Chamber largely defended the representative against calls for his resignation. McCarthy condemned some of Santos’ conduct, but Tuesday was the first time he suggested possible consequences for him.
“If somehow, when we go through Ethics, he has broken the law, then we will remove him,” McCarthy explained at a news conference outside his office.
However, the California Republican previously reiterated that he believes Santos should keep his House seat, since he was chosen to serve his constituents.
“Do you know why I’m next to him? Because his voters voted for him, ”he highlighted. “I don’t have the power, simply because I disagree with someone about what they’ve said, that I will remove them from elected office.”
McCarthy had said last week that he always “had questions” about the resume of Santos, who was named to two committees, Small Business and Science, Space and Technology, by the House Republican leadership last week.
The House speaker’s comments came after reports revealed that the New York Republican would have produced background information on him during his campaign last year in which he defeated Democrat Robert Zimmerman.
Santos lied about his employment and educational history, connections to an apparent Ponzi scheme, the death of his mother and that he had previously been married to a woman despite being openly gay.
In addition, he is being accused of using a fake animal charity in 2016 to con a disabled veteran by raising money for his dog’s cancer treatment, then keeping it for himself. The New York Republican has denied this accusation.
The congressman has faced calls to resign from the Republican Party and the Democratic Party in Congress and multiple New York Republicans. However, he said earlier this month that he would resign if the 142,000 people who voted for him asked for it.