Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) wrote to President Donald Trump on Monday to ask that he commute former New York Rep. George Santos’s nearly seven-year prison sentence.
Santos began his sentence last month after pleading guilty to money laundering and wire fraud charges, among other things, as part of a plea deal in April. On Monday, Greene sent a letter to Trump asking to grant Santos clemency, arguing that he had shown remorse and the sentence was excessive.
“I believe a seven-year sentence for such campaign-related matters for an individual with no prior criminal record extends far beyond what is warranted,” Greene wrote.
She shared that she worked with Santos during his brief stint in Congress, witnessing his “willingness and dedication to serve the people of New York who elected him to office.”
“He committed himself to serving his constituents and did whatever it took to represent their interests in Washington, D.C. He is sincerely remorseful and has accepted full responsibility for his actions. Furthermore, my office has spoken with a pastor of his who discussed the regret and remorse of Mr. Santos, agreeing that the sentence imposed is a grave injustice,” Greene wrote.
Furthermore, she argued that while his crimes warrant punishment, “many of my colleagues who I serve with have committed far worse offenses than Mr. Santos yet have faced zero criminal charges,” though she didn’t mention who.
BREAKING: I just sent a letter to the Office of the Pardon Attorney urging President Trump to commute the sentence of former Congressman @MrSantosNY.
A 7-year prison sentence for campaign-related charges is excessive, especially when Members of Congress who’ve done far worse… pic.twitter.com/Isj2mxlhsd
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
(@RepMTG) August 4, 2025
Santos had floated the possibility of Trump intervening in his last full day of freedom. Speaking to his followers in a Spaces live broadcast, the former representative was asked if he would be pardoned or have his sentence commuted.
“The answer to that is I don’t know; you’re asking the wrong person,” Santos responded. “The only person that can answer that question is, you know, whoever the president of the United States is — in this case, President Donald Trump.”
Speaking to Politico before he entered prison, however, he said that a pardon or commutation was unlikely.
GEORGE SANTOS REPORTS TO PRISON AFTER PLEADING FOR PARDON AND SUGGESTING HE’LL DIE THERE
“I don’t think he can,” Santos told Politico when asked about possible action from Trump. “He’s in a position where he needs to put the country ahead of one man, and that’s just a fact. He would lose support in the House from Republicans who have already capitulated.”
Santos was expelled from Congress in 2023 after serving for less than a year in his position. His brief stint was occupied by political scandal and a media frenzy, after it was discovered shortly after his electoral victory that he had made most of his resume up.