George Santos: Can the Republican spin his way out of his web of lies?

Published

2 years ago

May 10, 2023

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A Republican US congressman who admitted lying on his CV is to face criminal charges, officials have confirmed.

Details of the federal indictment against George Santos, who represents New York’s Long Island, have yet to be confirmed, but he could appear in court as early as today.

Federal prosecutors have been examining false statement allegations in Santos’ campaign filings.

The US politician is at the centre of a web of extraordinary revelations and accusations covering everything from his heritage to jobs he simply never held.

Described by critics as a “total fraud”, he is accused of fabricating parts of his resume while running for Congress. While he denies some of the allegations made against him, he has admitted that some of his claims were lies.

So far he has refused to step down and has previously tweeted that he is cooperating fully with a House Ethics Committee inquiry.

Here’s a round-up of Mr Santos’s claims, how we got here and what could happen next to the controversial congressman.

Who is George Santos?

It’s a seemingly simple question, but one that is becoming increasingly difficult to get a straight answer to. Here is what we know for sure.

The Brazilian-American, 34, was elected to represent New York’s 3rd Congressional District in November 2022, becoming the first openly gay Republican to win a House seat as a non-incumbent.

While his victory caused a buzz around Capitol Hill, it was soon dimmed by allegations starting in December over his resume.

A New York Times investigation found a number of false claims Mr Santos made on his CV including lies over his education and previous jobs.

From there, it’s all unravelled.

His responses have varied too. He has admitted that some were lies, rejected others and has backtracked on a few too.

He’s ‘Jew-ish’ not Jewish

Mr Santos has made conflicting remarks over being Jewish, taking part in a drag performance in Brazil and the circumstances around his mother’s death.

So let’s start with his heritage.

After his victory, he told the Republican Jewish Coalition summit, the election meant that “now there will be three” Jewish Republican members of Congress.

But then afterwards, he backtracked and told the New York Post he “never claimed to be Jewish”, and said he was Catholic adding: “Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish’.”

He said 9/11 ‘claimed his mother’s life’ – records show she wasn’t in the country

It’s also quite confusing when you take a look at the conflicting reports over the death of Mr Santos’s mother, Fatima Caruso Devolder.

While running for Congress in 2021, Mr Santos tweeted that the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York “claimed his mother’s life”.

Yet on his campaign website, Mr Santos said his mother was in her office in the South Tower on the day of the terrorist attack but “survived” and died “a few years” later from cancer.

However, records obtained by Sky’s affiliate NBC News and reports by the Washington Post citing immigration records, suggested Ms Devolder had not even been living in the US at the time of the attack and was in fact living in Rio de Janeiro.

He has not publicly commented on that since.

‘Sue me for having a life’

Now on to one of the latest claims about the congressman’s performance at a drag show.

A Brazilian performer, who uses the drag name Eula Rochard, told Reuters she befriended the now-congressman in 2005 in Brazil.

She said in 2008, he competed in a drag beauty pageant in Rio using the drag name Kitara Ravache.

While the congressman first called the reports “categorically false” on Twitter, when confronted on camera, he told US channel ABC7 – “I was young and I had fun at a festival – sue me for having a life.”

The Trump effect

Political strategist Rina Shah said only a “handful” of Republicans are calling for Mr Santos’s resignation and his behaviour echoes the “Trump effect”.

The former senior staffer to two Republican Congress members described him as a “conman”.

She told Sky News: “The situation certainly highlights the Donald Trump effect. The impact of the 45th President, a real style of running to just regularly make claims to be boastful in a way of things that were simply not true and proven to be untrue.”

She added that Mr Santos has “taken on” that style “in a defiant manner that says ‘come and get me because even if you try to get me, I’ll just continue to lie about it’.”

Despite the lies, Ms Shah said no top Republican will take action against him because they “cannot afford to lose” his House seat.

The Republicans won a razor-thin majority in the House following the midterms and she warned that Mr Santos’s removal could endanger the seat.

Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he would withhold judgment on Santos, saying: “In America, you’re innocent until proven guilty.”

He didn’t work on Wall Street

While the list of accusations against Mr Santos has grown, he has admitted to lying about some things.

Mr Santos claimed on his campaign website he had a finance career working at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs – but the NYT investigation found neither institution had any record of his employment.

He admitted to lying about his education and the roles at the two firms and told the New York Post: “My sins here are embellishing my resume. I’m sorry.”

Stealing from a disabled veteran

But there are some cases where Mr Santos has flat-out denied certain claims.

He denied an accusation by veteran Richard Osthoff, who accused him of scamming him of $3,000 from a GoFundMe campaign page raised for his dying service dog in 2016.

Mr Osthoff told the news site Patch that he was told Anthony Devolder, one of the names Mr Santos used before entering politics, had a pet charity called Friends of Pets United.

He claimed Mr Devolder closed the page and disappeared after the funds were raised. Mr Santos has angrily denied the reports and called them “shocking and insane”.

What makes his ‘lies’ different?

While some may say lying in politics is not new, one psychologist specialising in lying and deception research explains why Mr Santos’s claims and accusations may seem a little different.

Dr Chris Hart, a psychology professor at Texas Woman’s University, told Sky News: “If we look at the lies most politicians tell they’re often exaggerations and half-truths. They rarely lie in such a way that they are making a claim which has absolutely no basis in reality and that’s where he is different.

“The frequency with which he appears to tell them is a bit surprising compared to other politicians.”

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‘I will NOT resign’

Revelations about Mr Santos’s lies and the allegations against him have caused anger among Democrats who have described him as a “total fraud” and are calling for him to resign.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said he is a “complete and total fraud” and he “deceived and connived his way into Congress”.

Despite calls from some Republicans and Democrats, Mr Santos has repeatedly refused to resign.

For now, it seems he has no intention to go anywhere.

US

Plane plunges 300ft in 36 seconds to avoid another aircraft

Published

3 hours ago

July 26, 2025

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Plane plunges 300ft in 36 seconds to avoid another aircraft

A US passenger plane made a dramatic plunge minutes after take-off to dodge another aircraft – injuring two cabin crew and causing passengers to shoot out of their seats.

The Southwest flight had just taken off from Burbank in California when the pilot received an alert about a nearby plane.

Data from FlightAware shows the aircraft dropped by 91m (300ft) in just 36 seconds. Those on board said they felt panicked, and some feared the plane was about to crash.

Comedian Jimmy Dore posted on X: “Pilot had to dive aggressively to avoid mid-air collision … myself and plenty of people flew out of their seats and bumped heads on ceiling, a flight attendant needed medical attention.”

Stef Zambrano saw a woman who wasn’t wearing her seatbelt thrown out of her seat, who then said: “I want to get off this plane. I want to be on the ground.”

Another passenger, Steve Ulasewicz, told NBC Los Angeles that it felt like the plane was in freefall for 10 seconds.

“People were screaming. You know, it was pandemonium. People thought the plane was going down,” he added.

The aircraft was able to continue to its destination of Las Vegas, where it safely landed without any further incident.

It is believed the Boeing 737 was in the same vicinity as a Hawker Hunter Mk. 58, a British fighter jet.

Southwest is now working with the Federal Aviation Administration “to further understand the circumstances” of the event.

This is the second time in a week that a passenger plane has had to make abrupt flight manoeuvres to avoid a potential mid-air collision.

Concerns have been raised about aviation safety in the US following a series of recent incidents.

In January, a mid-air collision in Washington DC killed 67 people.

US

Snipers, Secret Service sweeps and a personal chef on standby: Scotland awaits Trump’s arrival

Published

3 hours ago

July 26, 2025

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Snipers, Secret Service sweeps and a personal chef on standby: Scotland awaits Trump's arrival

Donald Trump likes a wall. And now he has his very own 10ft-high metal barrier creating a fortress as he tees off for a weekend of politics, play and precision in Scotland.

An almost surreal contrast now exists in the tiny Ayrshire village of Turnberry.

On one side, the stunning coastline and luxury hotel that bears the president’s name. And on the other, an armed buffer zone with sniper teams and road checkpoints.

This visit is unlike those that have gone before.

The threat level and associated security on display is unprecedented following the attempted assassination of Trump at a campaign rally in the US.

“It would be inappropriate for me to plan an operation and not bear in mind what has happened,” the senior officer in charge of this weekend’s policing efforts told me.

Turnberry, and its population of about 200 people, have this week witnessed a never-ending stream of Army trucks, terrorist sweeps, road checkpoints, airspace restrictions, sniper positions being erected and Secret Service agents roaming around.

It is the most extensive security deployment in Scotland since the death of the late Queen in 2022.

It is estimated around 5,000 officers will be on the streets, with teams coming from across the UK to assist.

The spectacle primarily centres on Donald Trump coming to play golf before the arrival of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer for talks, likely on Monday.

The president, whose mother was born on the Scottish island of Lewis, is then scheduled to travel to his Aberdeenshire resort where a new golf course is set to open.

‘Trump is a decent boss’

Stephanie Campbell and Leanne Maxwell live in Turnberry and used to work at the Trump-owned resort, like many other locals.

The pair told Sky News the very first lesson staff at the resort are given is not in fine service or guest etiquette, but in how to respond to a bomb threat.

It is claimed there are posters above the landline phones in the hotel with instructions on the worst-case scenario.

Stephanie told Sky News: “I had no issues working for him, he is a really decent boss.

“The last time he came there was an element of excitement, I think this time there comes with an added element of concern.

“It brings a lot higher threats and security and it’s much more difficult for everybody in the area.”

Echoing her concerns, Leanne told Sky News: “Security is obviously being bumped up. It’s quite worrying. He’s quite a man, ain’t he?”

Sweeps of the rooms are carried out by US Secret Service agents after housekeeping staff complete their duties and Trump’s meals, they say, are prepared by a personal chef to avoid the risk of poisoning.

To the outside world, these measures seem standard for a US president. But to those who live in Turnberry, it’s far from normal when they have a date with the commander-in-chief.

Awkward encounters

Prestwick Airport has become something of an American airbase in recent days.

The infamous armoured limousine, known as “The Beast”, has been spotted being wheeled out of a US military plane as the presidential motorcade prepares for his arrival tonight.

Greeting the president at the doors of Air Force One will be the secretary of state for Scotland, Ian Murray, who previously supported a motion alleging Trump was guilty of “misogynism, racism and xenophobia”.

Another awkward encounter could come in the form of Scottish First Minister John Swinney’s showdown with Mr Trump next week.

The SNP leader, who publicly backed Kamala Harris in the presidential race, called for September’s state visit to be scrapped after the Ukrainian president’s visit to the White House descended into a shouting match live on TV earlier this year.

Demonstrations are planned throughout the weekend, with marches and protests announced in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Kirsty Haigh, from Scotland Against Trump, claims the president uses Scotland to “cleanse his image” and he should not be able to use the country as an “escape” from his views.

She told Sky News: “He should not be welcomed by us, by our leaders.

“We want to see a Scotland that is very different than [the] America that’s being created.”

US

Ghislaine Maxwell answered justice department questions ‘about 100 different people’, her lawyer says

Published

3 hours ago

July 26, 2025

admin

Ghislaine Maxwell answered justice department questions 'about 100 different people', her lawyer says

Ghislaine Maxwell answered “every single question” from the US justice department, her lawyer has said.

The imprisoned former girlfriend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein answered questions “about 100 different people” during one-and-a-half days of questioning in the federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, her attorney David Oscar Markus said.

A senior administration official has confirmed to Sky News’ US partner, NBC News, that Maxwell was granted limited immunity, meaning the information could not be used against her in any future cases or proceedings.

Mr Markus said Maxwell “answered those questions honestly, truthfully, to the best of her ability” when she met with deputy attorney general Todd Blanche.

“She never invoked a privilege. She never refused to answer a question, so we’re very proud of her,” Mr Markus added.

Maxwell, who was jailed in 2022 for luring young girls to massage rooms for Epstein to abuse, is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Epstein, 66, was found dead in his cell at a Manhattan federal jail in August 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide.

His case has generated endless attention and conspiracy theories due to his and Maxwell’s links to famous people like royals, presidents and billionaires, including Donald Trump.

Mr Trump is facing ongoing questions about the Epstein case. He denied prior knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and claimed he cut off their relationship long ago.

The deputy US attorney general, Mr Blanche, announced earlier this week that Maxwell would be interviewed because of Mr Trump’s directive to gather and release any credible evidence about others who may have committed crimes.

Maxwell’s lawyer, Mr Markus, praised Mr Blanche’s approach.

“The deputy attorney general is seeking the truth. He asked every possible question, and he was doing an amazing job,” he said.

Maxwell’s immunity from future proceedings is “limited” because it only covers her if she tells the truth. Typically, prosecutors will consider the defendant’s cooperation in an investigation when recommending a lighter sentence as part of a plea deal.

But since Maxwell has already been convicted, it is not clear how she might benefit from the immunity.

Mr Markus said Maxwell did not receive anything in return for answering the questions, but he acknowledged that Mr Trump could pardon her. “We hope he exercises that power in the right and just way,” Mr Markus said.

When asked whether he had thought about a pardon or clemency for Maxwell, Mr Trump claimed he had not considered it.

“I’m allowed to do it, but it’s something I have not thought about,” he told reporters outside the White House.

He later shut down another question, saying: “I don’t want to talk about that.”

Meanwhile, Maxwell’s family have suggested the disgraced British socialite could use “government misconduct” to challenge her imprisonment.

Her family have frequently claimed she “did not receive a fair trial”, but legal appeals against her sex trafficking convictions have been rejected by the courts.

Judges previously dismissed arguments from Maxwell’s lawyers that she “should never have been prosecuted” because of a “weird” agreement drafted more than 15 years ago.

The family argue that Maxwell should have been protected under an agreement Epstein had entered with the US Department of Justice in 2007, which agreed not to prosecute any of his co-conspirators.

During her trial in 2021, Maxwell was described as “dangerous” by prosecutors, who told jurors about how she would entice vulnerable girls to go to Epstein’s properties for him to sexually abuse.

In a statement, her family said: “Our sister Ghislaine did not receive a fair trial. Her legal team continues to fight her case in the courts and will file its reply in short order to the government’s opposition in the US Supreme Court.”