It’s not yet clear what Rep. George Santos (R-NY) will announce during his planned press conference on the Capitol steps on Nov. 30 — the spectrum of possibilities is vast and could range from denying he’s ever gotten Botox to announcing his resignation.
The calculated media moment is rare for the congressman who often makes headlines by simply walking the halls of the Capitol, sometimes toting an unidentified infant. But it’ll come at a precarious time for Santos, just a few days after the House returns from the Thanksgiving break when his colleagues are expected to vote on whether to expel him from Congress.
While the House Ethics Committee did not include an expulsion recommendation in its bombshell report accusing Santos of trying to “fraudulently exploit every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit,” the panel’s Republican chairman Rep. Michael Guest (R-MS) introduced an expulsion resolution last week.
“The evidence uncovered in the Ethics Committee’s Investigative Subcommittee investigation is more than sufficient to warrant punishment and the most appropriate punishment, is expulsion,” Guest said in a statement. “So, separate from the Committee process and my role as Chairman, I have filed an expulsion resolution.”
My colleague Hunter Walker dug in on whether members who have previously voted against expelling Santos — including Democrats — will pivot this time around. Republicans may be loathe to oust one of their own when they already hold such a slim majority and are barely able to function as the party in power already. But there has been some speculation that Santos will resign before his colleagues have a chance to weigh in, aware of just how disliked he is among constituents.
While his favorability in his home district is already bad enough, a new poll from Marist College this week shows that contempt of Santos runs statewide.
The study, which focuses on quality of life in New York state, found that 75 percent of New Yorkers want Santos to resign from Congress, including 68 percent of Republican respondents. Only 22 percent of those surveyed think he should finish out the rest of his term.
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