Republican leaders have consistently defended Rep. George Santos's right to serve in Congress. His wide-ranging indictment, which includes charges of wire fraud, money laundering and stealing public funds, did nothing to change that dynamic.
American politician, 55th Speaker of the United States House of RepresentativesHouse Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks to reporters after meeting with President Joe Biden to negotiate to raise the debt limit where no deal was reached, at the Capitol in Washington, May 9, 2023.
“If a person is indicted, they’re not on committees,” McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday before the charges were unsealed. “They have a right to vote, but they have to go to trial.” It was in line with the position McCarthy has taken since January, when the speaker made no move to penalize or marginalize Santos, even in the face of mounting allegations of misconduct and lies by him.McCarthy allowed Santos, who is in his first term, to be placed on two congressional committees.
“Unfortunately, this is not the first time a member of Congress from either party has been indicted,” Stefanik said. She said Republicans were just as focused on rooting out “any fraud when it comes to unemployment pandemic assistance.” One Republican from upstate New York, Rep. Claudia Tenney, said that while she was “horrified by his behavior,” she believed in due process, although she did not expect Santos to finish out his term. Tenney said her colleagues in districts closer to Santos’ felt more political pressure to call for his immediate resignation.
The speaker has even more immediate legislative concerns. On Wednesday, he was struggling to quell opposition to a border security bill, delaying a planned vote on a rule that would set up a floor vote on the legislation on Thursday. Santos said that he planned to travel to Washington to vote on the measure.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., was indicted on bribery charges in 2015. A federal jury was unable to reach a verdict and the judge declared a mistrial, and today Menendez is chair of the Foreign Relations Committee.
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