Kyrsten Sinema spox corrects the record on her SOTU exchange with George Santos: 'It did not happen'

11 February 2023

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's (I-Ariz.) office is pushing back against claims suggesting she offered words of encouragement to embattled Republican lawmaker Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) when they crossed paths at President Joe Biden's State of the Union earlier this week.

According to HuffPost, the claims stem from a Newsmax interview where Santos said the centrist lawmaker was more cordial with him than Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who made his disapproval quite clear.

Per the news outlet, the Republican lawmakers had a heated exchange that included Romney telling Santos he "didn’t belong in Congress."

“Kyrsten Sinema, as she was walking by, she said something to the effect of ‘Hang in there buddy,’ or something like that,” Santos told Newsmax. “I said, ‘Thank you, Madam Senator.’"

He added: “She was very polite [and] kind-hearted. She’s a good person, unlike Mr. Romney, who thinks he’s above it all and who is on an almighty white horse trying to talk down to us on morality.”

However, a spokesperson for Sinema has called Santos' claim a blatant "lie." Hannah Hurley, Sinema's communications director, emailed HuffPost to offer clarity on the situation.

“I can confirm that it did not happen,” Hurley said in the email.

At the time, Santos was standing next to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), so there is also speculation she could have been speaking to him instead. However, Romney has not minced words in expressing his disapproval of Santos.

“He’s a sick puppy. He shouldn’t have been there,” Romney told reporters after Biden's speech. “Given the fact that he’s under an ethics investigation, he should be sitting in the back row and being quiet instead of parading in front of the president. You certainly shouldn’t be in the aisle trying to shake the hand of the President of the United States and dignitaries coming in. It’s an embarrassment.”

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