Rep. Santos quickly dismisses Nassau GOP's call for him to resign

The Nassau GOP said they were "duped," and that Santos' campaign was full of deceit, lies and fabrication.

Associated Press

Jan 11, 2023, 12:09 PM

Updated 640 days ago

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Dozens of Long Island Republicans on Wednesday called for the immediate resignation of new GOP Rep. George Santos, who is facing multiple investigations by prosecutors over his personal and campaign finances and lies about his resume and family heritage.
The Nassau GOP said they were "duped," and that Santos' campaign was full of deceit, lies and fabrication. They say they did not see any red flags prior to the media digging into the new congressman's resume.
"His lies were not mere fibs. He disgraced the House of Representatives," Joseph Cairo Jr., chair of the Nassau County Republican Committee, said at a news conference. "He's not welcome here at Republican headquarters."
Cairo also said that the party was given his resume in writing, and they believed him, which he called a "mistake."
Rep. Anthony D'Esposito, another Republican newly elected to represent Long Island, spoke at the news conference via video from Washington and joined Cairo's call for his colleague's resignation.
"George Santos does not have the ability to serve here in the House of Representatives and should resign," D'Esposito said.
The Suffolk GOP also requested Santos resign from the House of Representatives.
The local party has no mechanism to remove Santos from the office. He was sworn into the U.S. House last week and said on Twitter that he will not resign.
The move comes a day after two Democrats from New York asked the House Ethics Committee to investigate Santos. Reps. Ritchie Torres and Dan Goldman, in a letter to the committee, said Santos also failed to file "timely, accurate and complete" financial disclosure reports and the reports he did file are "sparse and perplexing."
Earlier this week, the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center lodged a complaint with the Federal Election Commission and urged regulators to investigate Santos. The "mountain of lies" Santos propagated during the campaign about his life story and qualifications, the center said, should prompt the commission to "thoroughly investigate what appear to be equally brazen lies about how his campaign raised and spent money."
The Nassau GOP says they will be doing a more intense vetting process moving forward.
AP wires contributed to this report.