New York Republican Rep. George Santos has faced calls to step down after The New York Times revealed last month that much of his life story was fabricated.
Yet not only is Santos refusing to resign, but the Washington Examiner reported on Wednesday that he is being appointed to a pair of House committees.
According to the paper, Santos has been selected to serve on the House Small Business Committee as well as the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
The Examiner noted that Texas Republican Rep. Roger Williams will head the House Small Business Committee, while the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee will be chaired by Oklahoma Republican Rep. Frank Lucas.
For his part, newly elected House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was quoted by The Hill as telling reporters on Capitol Hill last week that Santos "will continue to serve" despite the controversy surrounding him.
"I try to stick by the Constitution," McCarthy continued, adding, "The voters elected him to serve. If there is a concern, and he has to go through the Ethics, let him move through that."
The speaker dismissed objections about Santos having lied about large sections of his life, saying, "So did a lot of people here in the Senate and others."
"It’s the voters who made that decision. He has to answer to the voters and the voters to make another decision in two years," McCarthy said. "He is going to have to build the trust here and he’s going to have the opportunity to try to do that."
However, the speakers' words are unlikely to placate Santos' critics, and they include some members of his own party.
They include Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly, who told Newsday in December that her office will be conducting an investigation of the freshman lawmaker.
Another is Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman. He said to Fox News that Santos' presence is "a stain upon the House of Representatives" and characterized the congressman as being someone "I can't trust."
Nevertheless, Santos pushed back on his critics in a tweet earlier this month in which he said he regretted "to hear that local officials refuse to work with my office to deliver results to keep our community safe and lower the cost of living."
I was elected to serve the people of #NY03 not the party & politicians, I remain committed to doing that and regret to hear that local officials refuse to work with my office to deliver results to keep our community safe and lower the cost of living.
I will NOT resign!
— George Santos (@Santos4Congress) January 11, 2023
Santos insisted that he "was elected to serve the people" of his district and remains "committed to doing that."
