A newly elected Republican congressman lied about his life story. Now he’s facing real trouble | 24CA News

Long Island prosecutors have launched an investigation into U.S. Rep.-elect George Santos of New York, after revelations surfaced that the now-embattled Republican lied about his heritage, schooling {and professional} pedigree as he campaigned for workplace.

But regardless of intensifying doubt about his health to carry federal workplace, Santos has to date proven no indicators of stepping apart — at the same time as he has publicly admitted to an extended listing of lies.

“The numerous fabrications and inconsistencies associated with Congressman-Elect Santos are nothing short of stunning,” mentioned Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly, a Republican.

“The residents of Nassau County and other parts of the third district must have an honest and accountable representative in Congress,” she mentioned. “No one is above the law and if a crime was committed in this county, we will prosecute it.”

Santos’s marketing campaign didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark Wednesday.

The Republican has admitted to mendacity about having Jewish ancestry, a Wall Street pedigree and a university diploma, however he has but to deal with different lingering questions — together with the supply of what seems to be a rapidly amassed fortune regardless of latest monetary issues, together with evictions and owing hundreds in again lease.

He is scheduled to be sworn in subsequent Tuesday, when the U.S. House reconvenes. If he assumes workplace, he may face investigations by the House Committee on Ethics and the Justice Department.

The New York lawyer basic’s workplace has already mentioned it’s trying into among the points which have come to mild.

Republicans ‘troubled’

Some fellow Republicans had referred to as for Congress and legislation enforcement to launch inquiries. Fellow Long Island Republican, Rep.-elect Nick Lalota mentioned he was troubled by the revelations.

“I believe a full investigation by the House Ethics Committee and, if necessary, law enforcement, is required,” Lalota mentioned Tuesday.

Other Republicans castigated Santos for his dishonesty however stopped wanting asking him to step apart.

“Congressman-Elect George Santos has broken the public trust by making serious misstatements regarding his background, experience and education, among other issues,” mentioned Joseph Cairo, chair of the Nassau County Republican Committee, which lies inside the third Congressional District.

Cairo mentioned he “expected more than just a blanket apology,” including that “the damage that his lies have caused to many people, especially those who have been impacted by the Holocaust, are profound.”

A litany of lies

Questions intensified after The New York Times examined the narrative Santos, 34, introduced to voters throughout his profitable marketing campaign for a congressional district that straddles the north shore suburbs of Long Island and a sliver of Queens.

The Times uncovered information in Brazil that present Santos was the topic of a legal investigation there in 2008 over allegations that he used stolen cheques to purchase objects at an clothes store within the metropolis of Niteroi. At the time, Santos would have been 19. The Times quoted native prosecutors as saying the case was dormant as a result of Santos had by no means appeared in courtroom.

Santos continued to disclaim that he was being sought by authorities in South America.

In an interview with the New York Post earlier this week, Santos apologized for his fabrications however downplayed them as “sins” over embellishing his resume, including that “we do stupid things in life.”

He admitted to mendacity about working for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, in addition to having earned a level in finance and economics from Baruch College in New York.

Beyond his resume, Santos invented a life story that has additionally come below query, together with claims that his grandparents “fled Jewish persecution in Ukraine, settled in Belgium, and again fled persecution during WWII.”

During his marketing campaign, he referred to himself as “a proud American Jew.” He backtracked on that declare, saying he by no means supposed to say Jewish heritage, which might have doubtless raised his attraction amongst his district’s important ranks of Jewish voters.

“I am Catholic,” he advised the Post. “Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background I said I was ‘Jew-ish.”‘

In an announcement Tuesday, the Republican Jewish Coalition repudiated Santos.

“He deceived us and misrepresented his heritage. In public comments and to us personally he previously claimed to be Jewish,” the coalition mentioned. “He will not be welcome at any future RJC event.”

Santos misplaced his first race for Congress in 2020 however efficiently ran once more this yr.

Red flags missed

In its opposition analysis on Santos, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee raised a number of pink flags concerning the Republican’s report — but additionally accepted a few of his assertions, together with his academic report, as reality. The 87-page file sought to tie him to the Jan. 6 rebel on the U.S. Capitol and his assist for baseless claims of widespread fraud within the 2020 presidential election.

The report additionally sought to depict him as a far-right candidate. But buried inside its report, the DCCC had raised points about his shaky monetary standing and a number of evictions that left him hundreds of {dollars} in debt.

Federal marketing campaign information present that he loaned his marketing campaign greater than $700,000 US, however the supply of that cash has but to be defined.

“George Santos is delusional if he thinks voters will trust him after he’s been exposed for lie after lie and continues to withhold key information,” DCCC spokesperson Nebeyatt Betre mentioned.

While his Democratic opponent, Robert Zimmerman, additionally tried to boost Santos’s misrepresentations throughout his dropping marketing campaign, it didn’t achieve a lot traction.

Zimmerman had mentioned that Santos was unfit for workplace and has referred to as for him to step apart so a particular election may be held.