'Absolutely pathetic moral bankruptcy': Santos report prompts calls for resignation and expulsion
Following the House Committee on Ethics' report on Rep. George Santos (R-New York), the embattled Congressman has said he'll not be running for reelection. But according to social media reactions to the report, some observers think Santos should leave office sooner.
"Upon returning to Washington following the Thanksgiving break, I intend to file a motion to expel George Santos from Congress once and for all," Rep. Dan Goldman (D-New York) said.
However, Goldman isn't the only one planning to file such a motion. Rep. Michael Guest (R-Mississippi), who chairs the Ethics Committee, told Roll Call he plans to file the expulsion motion as soon as Friday. And Santos' headaches may not even end there, as the Ethics Committee included criminal referral to the US Department of Justice for several new charges not already included in Santos' current indictments.
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"George Santos now says he won't seek reelection," tweeted @JoJoFromJerz. "Silly George, you're gonna be in prison."
The proximity of the Thanksgiving holiday prompted some creative reactions to the Santos report on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter).
"Thanksgiving is next week, but George Santos is getting carved up today," tweeted X user @7Veritas4.
"George Santos got roasted and stuffed like a Thanksgiving turkey," @prolibshow posted.
READ MORE: Ethics Committee report on George Santos released: 'Overwhelming evidence' of misconduct
"Absolutely pathetic moral bankruptcy in the House," tweeted liberal pundit @ArtCandee.
"He also needs to resign immediately," journalist Tyler Cook wrote.
Other political commentators, like former Republican operative Rick Wilson of the Lincoln Project, used the Santos report to ridicule House Republicans over their recent weeks-long leadership squabble.
"Republicans in a few weeks: Speaker Santos is the leader we need,'" Wilson wrote.
READ MORE: George Santos threatens to quit Congress if GOP works with Dems on speaker deal: reports
When details emerged of the various luxury items Santos used campaign funds to pay for — including designer bags, meals, parking and even adult content online — X user @fireleddi tweeted a photo of a bewildered Steph Curry with the text "sounds like I need to run for office [for real]."
The last House vote to expel Santos failed, with both Democrats and Republicans voting against the measure. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) opposed the vote, saying that expelling Santos prior to the Ethics Committee publishing its findings would amount to a violation of Santos' due process rights. A vote to expel a member of Congress requires a two-thirds majority, meaning several dozen Republicans would need to vote with Democrats to remove one of their colleagues from the body.
Scroll above to view reactions to the Santos report, or click this link.
