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For the last few months, House Republican leaders have clung to a specific talking point like a life preserver in response to questions about Rep. George Santos: It’s a matter for the Ethics Committee.
In fact, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reiterated the line this week. “I’ve always said from the very beginning, Ethics will get together, I think Ethics is gonna look into the situation. If something arises to that point, there’s consequences for actions that you take,” the Californian told The Hill.
It’s long been a flawed response, in part because GOP leaders could take action immediately, as they have in the recent past in response to other scandal-plagued members. But just as notable was the fact that the House Ethics Committee — the entity that was apparently supposed to be dealing with the truth allergic New York Republican — hadn’t actually done anything, despite Santos’ many scandals.
This afternoon, that changed. The House panel issued this relatively brief press statement, kicking off the process:
[T]he Committee unanimously voted on February 28, 2023, to establish an Investigative Subcommittee. Pursuant to the Committee’s action, the Investigative Subcommittee shall have jurisdiction to determine whether Representative George Santos may have: engaged in unlawful activity with respect to his 2022 congressional campaign; failed to properly disclose required information on statements filed with the House; violated federal conflict of interest laws in connection with his role in a firm providing fiduciary services; and/or engaged in sexual misconduct towards an individual seeking employment in his congressional office.
By any fair measure, that's a wide-reaching probe: The panel isn't just narrowing its focus to a controversy or two; members apparently intend to examine a broad scope of Santos scandals.
The committee’s four-member investigation will apparently be led by Republican Rep. David Joyce of Ohio and Democratic Rep. Susan Wild of Pennsylvania. They’ll be joined by Republican Rep. John Rutherford of Florida and Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland.
For those keeping score, the prolific liar is now facing a local investigation, a state investigation, a Justice Department investigation, an international investigation and now a congressional ethics investigation.
For a guy whose career on Capitol Hill hasn’t quite reached the two-month mark, that’s quite an accomplishment.
At this point, we’re still pretty early in the process, and these investigations generally take months, during which time the public can expect to hear very little about incremental developments. But House Ethics Committee investigations come with a range of possibilities, from complete exoneration to a recommended expulsion vote, and plenty of options in between.
For his part, Santos published a tweet this afternoon, which read in its entirety, “The House Committee on Ethics has opened an investigation, and Congressman George Santos is fully cooperating. There will be no further comment made at this time.”
If the freshman lawmaker believes this will curtail questions about his many controversies, he’s likely to be disappointed.