OAN Shannon Kelland
UPDATED 12:23 PM PT – Tuesday, December 27, 2022
Congressman George Santos has admitted to lying about parts of his biography. However, he has announced that he still intends to serve in Congress.
In two separate interviews on Monday, George Santos (R-N.Y.) acknowledged that he had fabricated facts about his family, education and employment history.
“I’m not going to make excuses for this, but a lot of people overstate in their resumes, or twist a little bit. … I’m not saying I’m not guilty of that,” he said. “I am not a criminal. Not here, not abroad, in any jurisdiction in the world have I ever committed any crimes.”
Santos also admitted that he never worked directly for the financial firms Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, as he had stated on his resume. However, he claimed that he did do work for them through a company called Link Bridge where he was vice president. He told the New York Post it was a “poor choice of words” to say he worked for them.
Additionally, Santos told the New York Post that he had not graduated from any college or university, despite the previous claims that he had degrees from both Baruch College and New York University.
“I didn’t graduate from any institution of higher learning,” he told the New York Post. “I’m embarrassed and sorry for having embellished my resume, I am sorry. We do stupid things in life.”
Most recently, the politician has come under fire for allegedly claiming that he is of Jewish heritage.
“I never claimed to be Jewish, I am Catholic,” he clarified. “Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish.’”
On Tuesday, the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) responded to the facts that had arisen. CEO Matt Brooks published a public statement on the matter.
“He [Santos] deceived us and misrepresented his heritage. In public comments and to us personally he previously claimed to be Jewish,” Brooks stated. “He has begun his tenure in Congress on a very wrong note. He will not be welcome at any future RJC event.”
Santos apologized for his fabrications. The Republican representative-elect continued to defend himself to the public and gives the perception that he has not done anything wrong. The New Yorkers believes that his fabrications will not affect his decisions in Congress.
“To get down to the nit and gritty, I’m not a fraud,” he said. “I’m not a criminal who defrauded the entire country and made up this fictional character and ran for Congress. I’ve been around a long time. I mean, a lot of people know me. They know who I am. They’ve done business dealings with me.”