I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! If you were expecting to be entertained— as I was— by the spectacle of a George Santos trial in 2 weeks, it’s not going to happen. As I feared from the git-go… he’s copping a plea and is expected to admit to his guilt on Monday at a 3PM hearing in Central Islip.
Yesterday evening, Hunter Walker broke the story, reporting that “Multiple Republican donors who were victims of the alleged scheme, in which Santos and his campaign made unauthorized charges on their credit cards, told TPM they were notified by federal prosecutors about the plea deal on Friday. The donors requested anonymity due to their status as victims of a crime. The docket in the case shows that both sides on Friday asked the judge to schedule an in person hearing for Monday, which the judge then ordered. Other deadlines were extended for after the newly scheduled hearing... Santos previously pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.” One of his top staffers, Sam Miele, and his campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, have pleaded guilty to related charges and both are cooperating with the prosecution and have been ready to testify against Santos.
Santos— whose drag name is Kitara Ravache— had been holding out for two stipulations— no prison time and book and movie rights for his story, at least in Brazilian Portuguese if not English. The federal prosecutors laughed in his face and turned both down. They have an air-tight case against him. Presumably Santos has now given up on the silly demands and is settling for a short time in a Club Fed prison. Santos has recently brought his drag persona back to life, selling custom videos in drag on Cameo for $350.
When you talk about weird Republicans, it certainly isn't just Trump and JD Vance. The whole party is infested with them— from Matt Gaetz sex trafficking underage boys and girls, Marjorie Traitor Greene spreading the most insane QAnon conspiracy theories and Lauren Boebert getting high and giving her boyfriend a handjob in a public theater filled with children to... Santos, over 100 of whose Republican colleagues joined most of teh Democrats to expel him from Congress in December. The Advocate noted that “The reintroduction of his drag persona is notable, especially given his prior denials about such activities. In January 2023, CNN reported that Santos had denied claims he performed as a drag queen, calling them 'categorically false,' despite evidence provided by a Brazilian performer showing Santos dressed in drag. This denial came amid other allegations about fabrications in Santos’s personal and professional histories.”
After Santos was kicked out of Congress, his district was won by Democrat Tom Suozzi by nearly 10 points. This cycle, the GOP is trying to win back the district with shady Hate Talk radio host and Santos crony Mike LiPetri who has been endorsed by Trump and other MAGA figures.
How much was his total fraud (to which he's pleading guilty)?