McCarthy says Santos can serve on committees as Republicans call for resignation
Virginia Aabram
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Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) addressed the controversy surrounding freshman Rep. George Santos (R-NY) on Wednesday, saying he wouldn’t keep the New York Republican off committees as he faces ethics complaints and calls to resign for fabricating parts of his background.
McCarthy told reporters that he does not think Santos should have a seat on a top committee but that he won’t keep him off all panels. The House Republican Steering Committee is deciding committee assignments for the 118th Congress this week, and as speaker, McCarthy has considerable influence over its decisions.
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“I try to stick by the Constitution. The voters elected him to serve. If there is a concern and he has to go through the Ethics, we’ll let him move through that, but right now, the voters have a voice in the decision … so he will continue to serve,” McCarthy said. “He’s gonna have to build the trust here, and he’s gonna have the opportunity to try to do that. … Is there a charge against him? In America today, you are innocent until proven guilty.”
Santos is accused of lying about aspects of his biography, including his family and employment history, as well as improperly using campaign funds. Among the alleged falsehoods, he’s claimed that his family survived the Holocaust and that he has degrees from New York colleges and worked at Goldman Sachs.
“I was elected to serve the people of #NY03 not the party & politicians, I remain committed to doing that and regret to hear that local officials refuse to work with my office to deliver results to keep our community safe and lower the cost of living. I will NOT resign!” Santos tweeted Wednesday after Nassau County Republicans called for him to step down.
Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) said Santos should not serve on any panels.
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“I think there’s some legitimate concerns being raised about how he conducted himself during the campaign,” Johnson told NBC News. “And if it was up to me, I wouldn’t seat the guy at any committees until we have a fuller understanding … of exactly what he did.”
Santos won a competitive new district in November and was sworn into Congress on Friday under intense scrutiny.