Dems frustrated when the resolution to expel George Santos falls in defeat

US Rep. George Santos isn’t going anywhere, as the resolution to expel him from the House of Representatives was resoundingly defeated.

To the dismay of Democrats and many in his own party, the controversial New York Republican kept his seat as an effort to oust him from office, led by fellow freshman Republicans, failed on Wednesday two-thirds of the necessary votes. .

BREAKING: The resolution to expel Rep. George Santos from the US House fails pic.twitter.com/PO4O1LvCSj

— ALX (@alx) November 1, 2023

“I have a right to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. I’m fighting for that right and if these guys don’t believe in that, then democracy is dead,” Santos told CNN’s Manu Raju before the vote .

The Republican faces an ongoing investigation by the House Ethics Committee and faces 23 charges against him, including wire fraud and identity theft to which Santos has pleaded not guilty.

With only 179 members voting in favor of expulsion, including 24 Republicans, the resolution was defeated by 213. voted “no” to HR 773.

Notably, 31 of the votes to keep him in Congress came from Democrats, including Congressional Black Caucus Chair Steven Horsford (Nev.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.), and Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland.

“If and when Santos is convicted of these serious criminal offenses or ethics charges, I will certainly vote to expel him,” Raskin told reporters. “Until then, it’s a very risky road to go down and we must respect due process and the rule of law, however obvious the end result may seem.”

NEW: Jamie Raskin says of his vote against George Santos’ deportation: ‘I’m a Constitution guy.’

He says he will “certainly vote to expel” Santos if he is convicted, but “until then, it’s a very risky road to go down and we must respect due process and the rule of law.” pic.twitter.com/U71OHIs8oB

— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) November 2, 2023

North Carolina Rep. Jeff Jackson, another Democrat who voted against expulsion, warned that the “best precedent is to expel members only after conviction or post-ethics investigation.

“That way you get at least due process, whether it’s internal or external, before deportation. That’s an existing precedent, at least as I understand it. This vote was basically asking us to change the precedent in a way unnecessary (we can wait three weeks) and could be really dangerous in the hands of a future Congress,” Jackson. he wrote on Reddit, adding that Santos “should definitely resign, without a doubt.”

After the vote, Santos spoke to reporters as he left the Capitol.

“I will continue to serve New York’s 3rd Congressional District until the people decide not to have me,” he said. said.

Senior Staff Writer
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida, where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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