George Santos became the sixth representative in U.S. history to be expelled from Congress.
But North Carolina’s Reps. Patrick McHenry and Dan Bishop tried to stop it.
On Friday, the House voted 311 to 114, with two Democrats voting present, to oust Santos following an ethics investigation that uncovered a myriad of misdeeds, including using campaign funds to buy designer items, Botox and access to OnlyFans. The scathing report accuses Santos of not only using campaign funds for personal use, but engaging in fraudulent conduct and violating the Ethics in Government Act.
But Santos’ list of alleged misdeeds far exceeds the report. Calls for his resignation began shortly after his election to Congress in 2022 when it was revealed that much of the biography he used in his campaign had been fabricated.
His colleagues have twice tried to remove him, but it takes a two-thirds majority and many, like Rep. Jeff Jackson, a Democrat from Charlotte, wanted to wait on the ethics report. Jackson announced after seeing the report that he would vote to expel Santos.
Rep. Deborah Ross, a Democrat from Wake County who serves on the House Ethics Committee, wrote on social media Wednesday: “Enough is enough with George Santos. He is unfit to serve in Congress.”
She voted along with North Carolina’s other Democrats to oust Santos.
Rep. Don Davis, a Democrat from Snow Hill, immediately tweeted a photo of the doors to the U.S. House and wrote, “Members of Congress must always remember it’s an honor and privilege to walk through these doors.”
While Democrats remained unified in their vote, state Republicans were split.
McHenry, a Republican from Denver, and Bishop, a Republican from Waxhaw, voted against the expulsion. The others supported it.
“What about Santos warranted departing from 234 years of the precedent that expulsion from Congress for alleged criminal acts follows conviction,” Bishop asked on social media. “I couldn’t identify anything.”
Historic vote to expel Santos
Santos’ expulsion puts him in the company of former Rep. Michael Myers and Jim Traficant, Democrats from Pennsylvania and Ohio, respectively. Both were kicked out of their offices after being convicted of crimes. The other three members were expelled for their ties to the Confederacy.
Like Myers and Traficant, Santos is facing criminal charges. In federal court, Santos has been accused of using campaign funds for personal expenses and using donors’ credit card numbers without permission. He is fighting those charges in court and has pleaded not guilty.
Santos told his colleagues on the House floor Tuesday night that the expulsion vote sets a dangerous precedent.
“Are we to now assume that one is no longer innocent until proven guilty and they are in fact guilty until proven innocent?” Santos asked. “Or are we to now simply assume because somebody doesn’t like you, they get to throw you out of your job?”
On Friday morning, Republican leadership said they would vote against expelling Santos, with Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Majority Whip Tom Emmer and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik all opposed. But they did not whip votes from their party, or call for members to vote with the party.
McHenry recently served as interim speaker after Republicans ousted Rep. Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, from his leadership role.
How NC voted
Here’s how North Carolina’s delegation voted:
- Don Davis: Yes
- Deborah Ross: Yes
- Greg Murphy: Yes
- Valerie Foushee: Yes
- Virginia Foxx: Yes
- Kathy Manning: Yes
- David Rouzer: Yes
- Dan Bishop: No
- Richard Hudson: Yes
- Patrick McHenry: No
- Chuck Edwards: Yes
- Alma Adams: Yes
- Wiley Nickel: Yes
- Jeff Jackson: Yes
This story was originally published December 1, 2023, 11:24 AM.
