There are several events in American history that will never be forgotten. From the Declaration of Independence to the Emancipation Proclamation to Watergate. Given this generation’s short attention span and life seemingly being more chaotic than ever, it’s hard to determine what will fall in this memorable category or simply be tucked away in the back of our brains. What will be remembered in a year? A decade? A century? What will be the most absurd story that it’s simply impossible to forget?
After learning about George Santos, I think it takes the cake. It’s alarming how we truly don’t know anyone, let alone representatives making important decisions in government. Now a fair disclaimer, this is going to be mostly my own opinion. While I may state facts, my own commentary is the main focus of this article. Please note that you will see a personal bias in this piece.
First, George Santos allegedly lied to donors and then used their money to make purchases at Hermes and Onlyfans. A House Ethics committee stated, “The funds were used to, among other things: pay down personal credit card bills and other debt; make a $4,127.80 purchase at Hermes; and for smaller purchases at OnlyFans; Sephora; and for meals and for parking.” This sounds like a teenage girl’s monthly spending habits, not a Congressman committing fraud. But this is barely the tip of the iceberg.
Santos used the campaign money for personal travel and Botox. So in between trips to the mall, he also booked expensive flights, hotels, Ubers, and meals without telling anyone of course. But the former Congressman has been vocal about his use of filler on Cameo, a platform where users can purchase video messages from washed celebrities like Mr. Santos himself. On the topic of Botox, he mentions that “you can tell. I’m 35, don’t look it.” I don’t know the terms and policies of lying on the site, but if so, he certainly should get banned.
Although my tone has been humorous so far, I want to mention he has actually committed crimes. This includes lying to collect unemployment benefits, identity theft, lying to Congress, and reimbursing himself for loans he did not make. Currently, Santos is in plea negotiations with federal prosecutors who will probably give him a slap on the wrist if the price is high enough. As much as our country preaches about being bias-less, that simply is not true. Everyone can be bought.
But I digress, as there are much bigger fish to fry. Let’s talk about how this man lied about being “Jew-ish”? Santos stated “I never claimed to be Jewish, I am Catholic. Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background I said I was ‘Jew-ish.’” He even claimed his grandparents moved to Brazil from Ukraine to escape the Nazis. This is not true at all. Genealogists see no apparent Jewish or Ukrainian heritage. Why would he lie about this? Especially since Santos brought it up in a speech on the House floor during International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Not a good look.
Another historic event he lied about a family member witnessing was his mother being in New York during 9/11. At first, he claimed it took her life in a July 2021 tweet. Later that year, Santos stated it was the fifth anniversary of her death, confirmed by her obituary. But on his campaign site, he says that she was in her office in the South Tower and died a few years later due to cancer. All of these statements are contradictory to the fact that there are no records of her working in the building and even evidence of her being in Brazil during 9/11. I don’t know if he thought voters would be persuaded by his mom being so affected by the tragedy, but he clearly didn’t think about what would happen when people found out he lied.
Santos lied about losing four employees who died in the Pulse shooting of 2016. The 49 victims at the Orlando club worked at any companies listed in his biography. His niece wasn’t kidnapped by the Chinese government which he actually stated in an interview with the New York Times. Apparently, she was seen leaving a park in Queens with two Chinese men who Santos heavily implied were spies. The local law enforcement has no record of this ever occurring so he’ll have to find another way to spread racist conspiracy theories now.
I feel like a broken record and there is so much more to unpack about this anomaly of a man, so next month, expect more hideous fibs and updates about previous Representative George Santos.
