Congressman George Santos will likely face another vote by his colleagues to expel him from the House of Representatives following the Thanksgiving break. Many members who voted against the last expulsion resolution said he was entitled to due process, but the release of a damning ethics report has made them change their minds. 

The 56-page report, released by the House Ethics Committee on Thursday, states that Mr. Santos is “found to be beneath the dignity of the office … and to have brought severe discredit upon the House.”

The report accuses him of engaging in a consistent pattern of lying in order to defraud campaign contributors, including campaign committees with ties to congressional Republican leadership. Mr. Santos allegedly filed fraudulent campaign finance reports with the Federal Elections Commission showing that he had raised tens of thousands of dollars, when, in fact, he had raised little in donations. 

When Mr. Santos began receiving money from Republican leadership, he then turned around to spend that money on himself. Among other things, Mr. Santos spent campaign funds on his honeymoon, at a casino, at two luxury fashion houses, for skincare and botox treatments, his rent, his personal credit card bills, and OnlyFans, a site people use to post pornography for a subscription fee. 

Following the release of the report, Mr. Santos defended himself but also announced he would not run for re-election in 2024. “It is a disgusting politicized smear that shows the depths of how low our federal government has sunk,” Mr. Santos wrote on X. 

“Everyone who participated in this grave miscarriage of Justice should all be ashamed of themselves.”

A lead sponsor of the first expulsion resolution, Congressman Nick LaLota, said, “George Santos is a total fraud who stole an election to get to Congress.” Congressman Anthony D’Esposito, who introduced the first expulsion, said he will “urge” his colleagues to vote for his next resolution. 

The committee report also said that Mr. Santos lied when he said his family members had been killed in the Holocaust and lied about his mother being a victim of the September 11 attacks. 

The ethics report is likely to kick off the expulsion process once again after a move to expel the Queens congressman failed earlier this month. His fellow New York Republicans said Thursday that they will push for another expulsion vote after the House returns from the Thanksgiving recess. 

“The report speaks for itself,” a Long Island GOP member, Congressman Andrew Garbarino, said. “There is significant evidence that Congressman George Santos willfully committed numerous wrongdoings including FEC violations, campaign finance violations, and financial disclosure violations. There is significant evidence that he exploited his position for personal gain.”

Several members who voted against the last expulsion resolution, which failed by a vote of 213 – 179, now say they would vote to expel Mr. Santos if a resolution is brought to the floor after the recess period. Congressman Zach Nunn, who voted no on the first resolution, says the “investigation proves he is unfit to serve and should resign from office. If he does not, I will vote to remove him.”

A Harvard-trained lawyer, Congressman Jamie Raskin, also voted against the first expulsion, saying Mr. Santos deserved his day in court rather than have his fate decided by his colleagues. Mr. Raskin, however, changed his tune after the release of the report, according to Axios. He says he will now vote to expel.