Indicted New York Representative George Santos launched Thursday into litany of innuendo about wrongdoing by other mostly unnamed lawmakers and suggested he may return to public service some day.
Santos’ free-wheeling comments came during a frenetic outdoor press conference just hours before the House was to expected begin a third, but more threatening, effort to expel him.
“I’m 35 years old. It does not mean it’s goodbye forever,” Santos said, seeming resigned to being removed from office.
But before he goes, Santos said he planned to roll out complaints against other House members for unidentified misconduct. One lawmaker he specifically mentioned that he would be filing a motion against is fellow New Yorker Jamaal Bowman, a Democrat.
Bowman had been charged with a misdemeanor for falsely pulling a fire alarm in a House office building ahead of a key vote. He pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor and agreed to pay a fine and write an apology to the Capitol Police. Santos noted that, as for himself, he has yet to be convicted of anything.
“No one in Congress, or anywhere in America, takes soon-to-be former Congressman George Santos seriously. This is just another meaningless stunt in his long history of cons, antics, and outright fraud,” Bowman said in a statement.
Santos spoke before lawmakers are expected to consider a new effort to expel him from the House, precipitated by a damning ethics report outlining a pattern of campaign lies, alleged theft and refusal to cooperate with investigators. He also faces a 23-count criminal indictment on Long Island including charges of wire fraud, unemployment benefit fraud and identity theft.
Read more: Santos Faces New House Expulsion Vote as Ethics Net Tightens
His early morning news conference put another theatrical flourish on 11 tumultuous months in office.
The Ethics Committee’s findings earlier this month have fueled sentiment for ousting Santos among Republicans who previously resisted such a drastic move. Only five other members of Congress have been removed in this way, three of them for treasonous acts during the Civil War.
Expulsion requires a two-thirds majority of the House.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said this week he has spoken to Santos about the New York Republican’s “options” going forward, suggesting the speaker is looking for a way to end the drama. But the speaker has limited leverage over Santos, who has never sat on any congressional committee and is already treated as a pariah on Capitol Hill.
Still, Johnson has expressed reservations about efforts to expel Santos, citing historical precedent that the House previously only has removed members following a criminal conviction or act of treason. Johnson has also said he’s worried about the Republicans’ narrow 222-213 majority, which means without Santos he would only be able to lose three Republican votes to pass legislation on a party-line vote.
Throughout his news conference, Santos appeared upbeat, considering the events surrounding him. At one point, he explained that it was his second wedding anniversary.
There were several humorous and playful moments.
At one point during a question and answer period, Santos was pressed about whether he was wearing anything bought with campaign funds - including the Ferragamo shoes he had on.
“No, nothing. These shoes are six years old,” he said, urging doubters to look it up on the Internet.
