House Democrats make new attempt to censure embattled Congressman George Santos
WASHINGTON (WABC) -- House Democrats announced a new attempt to censure embattled Long Island Congressman George Santos on Monday afternoon.
The resolution is being spearheaded by New York lawmakers Ritchie Torres and Dan Goldman.
"Speaker McCarthy promised the American people that there would be a rapid and quick investigation into the misconduct of George Santos," Torres said. "One House Republican assured us that he would be held accountable within 60 days. That comment was made on May 17. Today, is July 17th. 60 Days have passed and yet there seems to be no accountability when it comes to George Santos."
Speaker McCarthy suggested earlier that he won't support Democrats' censure resolution because the Ethics Committee investigation is ongoing,
"We have sent this to ethics. Ethics needs to do their jobs," McCarthy said.
Democrats said they decided to introduce the censure resolution for transparency and accountability.
It has a long shot of passing the Republican-led House, but Democrats are hoping it will add pressure on GOP leaders who have so far stood by Congressman Santos in the face of a 13-count federal indictment.
While censure is one of Congress's stiffest punishments, it does not force a lawmaker from office. But unlike expulsion, which requires the support of two-thirds of the House, a censure vote requires only a simple majority.
That means only a few Republicans would need to cross party lines for this measure to pass.
Torres says there's "no final decision yet on a vote," but added that the "likely timeline" is before August recess.
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The most recent censure case occurred just last month when Republicans voted to censure Democratic Congressmember Adam Schiff for his role investigating former President Donald Trump.
It infuriated Democrats who argued it was a political stunt and instead should be punishing Santos who lied about much of his life to voters.
Santos issuing a statement saying, "The Republican majority is also working hard to get the country back on track and clean up the mess left behind by destructive one-party Democrat rule. It is time to stop the political ping-pong and get real work done."
He is actively running for re-election next year.
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