Republican US congressman George Santos has been on the centre of an internet of extraordinary revelations and accusations – protecting all the pieces from his heritage to jobs he merely by no means held.
On Wednesday, the 34-year-old was arrested in New York on federal expenses of fraud, cash laundering and theft of public funds.
But the controversy surrounding Santos goes past immediately’s expenses and again to after he was elected to signify New York’s third Congressional District in November final yr.
He was accused of fabricating elements of his CV whereas working for Congress, and has refused to resign, regardless of calls to from his critics.
While he denies among the allegations made in opposition to him, he has admitted that a few of his CV claims had been lies.
Here’s a round-up of Santos’s claims, how we acquired right here and why Republicans “cannot afford to lose” his seat.
Who is George Santos?
It’s a seemingly easy query, however one that’s changing into more and more tough to get a straight reply to – here’s what we all know for positive.
The Brazilian-American was elected in November and have become the primary brazenly homosexual Republican to win a House seat as a non-incumbent.
While his victory prompted a buzz round Capitol Hill, it was quickly dimmed by allegations which began in December.
A New York Times investigation discovered numerous false claims Santos made on his CV together with lies over his training and former jobs.
From there, it is all unravelled.
His responses have diverse, too. He has admitted that some had been lies, rejected others and has backtracked on just a few as nicely.
He’s ‘Jew-ish’ not Jewish
Santos has made conflicting remarks over being Jewish, participating in a drag efficiency in Brazil and the circumstances round his mom’s loss of life.
So let’s begin together with his heritage.
After his victory, he instructed the Republican Jewish Coalition summit the election meant that “now there will be three” Jewish Republican members of Congress.
But then afterwards, he backtracked and instructed the New York Post he “never claimed to be Jewish”, and stated he was Catholic, including: “Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish’.”
He stated 9/11 ‘claimed his mom’s life’
It’s additionally fairly complicated once you check out the conflicting studies over the loss of life of Santos’s mom, Fatima Caruso Devolder.
While working for Congress in 2021, Santos tweeted that the 9/11 terrorist assault in New York “claimed his mother’s life”.
Yet on his marketing campaign web site, Santos stated his mom was in her workplace within the South Tower on the day of the terrorist assault however “survived” and died “a few years” later from most cancers.
However, data obtained by Sky’s US accomplice NBC News – in addition to studies by the Washington Post citing immigration data – steered Ms Devolder had not even been residing within the US on the time of the assault and was the truth is residing in Rio de Janeiro.
He has not publicly commented on that since.
‘Sue me for having a life’
Now on to a different declare, concerning the congressman’s efficiency at a drag present.
A Brazilian performer, who makes use of the drag identify Eula Rochard, instructed Reuters she befriended the now-congressman in 2005 in Brazil.
She stated in 2008, he competed in a drag magnificence pageant in Rio utilizing the drag identify Kitara Ravache.
While the congressman first known as the studies “categorically false” on Twitter, when confronted on digicam, he instructed US channel ABC7 – “I was young and I had fun at a festival – sue me for having a life.”
The Trump impact
Political strategist Rina Shah stated solely a “handful” of Republicans are calling for Santos’s resignation and his behaviour echoes the “Trump effect”.
The former senior staffer to 2 Republican Congress members instructed Sky News: “The situation certainly highlights the Donald Trump effect.
“[It’s] the influence of the forty fifth President – an actual type of working to only frequently make claims to be boastful in a approach of issues that had been merely not true and confirmed to be unfaithful.”
She added that Santos has “taken on” that style “in a defiant method that claims ‘come and get me as a result of even for those who attempt to get me, I’ll simply proceed to lie about it’.”
Despite the lies, Ms Shah said no top Republican will take action against him because they “can not afford to lose” his House seat.
The Republicans won a razor-thin majority in the House following the midterms and she warned that Santos’s removal could endanger the seat.
Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he would withhold judgment on Santos, saying: “In America, you are harmless till confirmed responsible.”
He didn’t work on Wall Street
While the list of accusations against Santos has grown, he has admitted to lying about some things.
On an earlier version of his campaign website, Santos was described as a “seasoned Wall Street financier” and claimed he had a finance career working at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.
The New York Times investigation found neither institution had any record of his employment. He admitted to lying about his education and the roles at the two firms and told the New York Post: “My sins listed below are embellishing my resume. I’m sorry.”
Stealing from a disabled veteran
But there are some circumstances the place Santos has flat-out denied sure claims.
He denied an accusation by veteran Richard Osthoff, who accused him of scamming him of $3,000 from a GoFundMe marketing campaign web page raised for his dying service canine in 2016.
Mr Osthoff instructed the information website Patch that he was instructed Anthony Devolder, one of many names Santos used earlier than coming into politics, had a pet charity known as Friends of Pets United.
He claimed Mr Devolder closed the web page and disappeared after the funds had been raised.
Santos has angrily denied the studies and known as them “shocking and insane”.
What makes his ‘lies’ completely different?
While some might say mendacity in politics isn’t new, one psychologist specialising in mendacity and deception analysis explains why Santos’s claims and accusations could appear slightly completely different.
Dr Chris Hart, a psychology professor at Texas Woman’s University, instructed Sky News: “If we look at the lies most politicians tell they’re often exaggerations and half-truths.
Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts
“They not often lie in such a approach that they’re making a declare which has completely no foundation in actuality and that is the place he’s completely different.
“The frequency with which he appears to tell them is a bit surprising compared to other politicians.”
Source: information.sky.com”