The House Ethics Committee issued an update regarding its investigation into Rep. George Santos (R-NY) just days before lawmakers are set to vote on whether to expel the New York freshman, indicating details of his alleged violations won’t be available until later next month.
In a statement released on Tuesday afternoon, the committee said it contacted roughly 40 witnesses and authorized 37 subpoenas since lawmakers voted on Feb. 23 to establish an investigative subcommittee into alleged ethics violations by Santos. Since then, the panel has reviewed more than 170,000 pages of documents in an investigation they say has been “a priority” and has “involved a significant amount of the Committee’s resources.”
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The subcommittee is investigating a number of allegations against the embroiled New York freshman, including 23 counts charged via two federal indictments as well as a number of other criminal and ethical indictments. These include allegations that Santos “engaged in unlawful activity” when he lied about his personal and professional experience on the campaign trail and failed to disclose required financial reports, according to the statement.
The investigation also examined other allegations against Santos, including his role in a firm providing fiduciary services as well as accusations that he engaged in sexual misconduct with a person “seeking employment in his congressional office.”
The committee did not provide details of its findings, noting more information about “its next course of action” would be available on or before Nov. 17.
The update comes just days before the House is set to vote on whether to remove Santos from the House altogether after Rep. Anthony D'Esposito (R-NY) introduced an expulsion resolution on Thursday afternoon alongside fellow Reps. Mike Lawler (R-NY), Nick LaLota (R-NY), and Marc Molinaro (R-NY). D’Esposito filed the resolution as privileged, forcing a vote on the motion within the next two legislative days, teeing it up for a vote on either Wednesday or Thursday.
Since being sworn into office at the beginning of this year, Santos has been at the center of controversy after the freshman lawmaker acknowledged he had embellished several elements of his life story while on the campaign trail. Santos also finds himself in possible legal trouble, having been twice indicted by the Justice Department on several counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds, and lying to Congress.
Santos has pleaded not guilty to the charges and maintained he will not resign from office.
The expulsion resolution requires a two-thirds majority to pass the House, meaning at least 78 Republicans would need to vote in favor if all lawmakers are present and voting. That could be difficult to obtain, especially as Republicans seek ways to defend their slim majority in the lower chamber.
“We have a four-seat majority," House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) told Fox News’s Sean Hannity over the weekend. "We have no margin for error … We have to allow due process to play itself out."
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Democrats introduced a resolution in May seeking to expel Santos from Congress, but the motion failed to overcome the two-thirds majority threshold needed to pass after Republicans instead voted to refer the matter to the Ethics Committee for an investigation.
Then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) vowed to have an expedited investigation that would be completed before lawmakers left for August recess, but the committee has yet to release its findings. Now that those details may not be available until mid-November, it could give Republicans a chance to table the motion once again — buying Santos more time in the lower chamber.