Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York unveiled his plan to introduce a new rule aimed at revoking House floor privileges for members who have faced expulsion on Friday.
The proposed rule, dubbed the “GEORGE” rule, formally titled the “Getting Expelled Officially Revokes Guaranteed Entry” Rule, aims to prevent former lawmakers who have been ousted from utilizing their privileges to access the House floor.
The rule is clearly a play on the first name of disgraced GOP Rep. George Santos, who stunned his former peers with a brazen appearance at Thursday’s State of the Union address.
Santos was removed from Congress in December after a 311-114-2 vote by the House, making him the sixth lawmaker in history to be expelled from the lower chamber.
The New York Republican was hit with 23 criminal charges related to allegations of donor deception, unauthorized credit card charges, and fraudulent receipt of unemployment benefits.
“As alleged, Santos is charged with stealing people’s identities and making charges on his own donors’ credit cards without their authorization, lying to the FEC and, by extension, the public about the financial state of his campaign,” United States Attorney Breon Peace remarked about the October 2023 criminal filing.
“Santos falsely inflated the campaign’s reported receipts with non-existent loans and contributions that were either fabricated or stolen.”
The House Ethics Committee issued a damning report the following month, asserting that he “violated federal criminal laws” and could not be “trusted.”
“At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles,” the report stated.
Despite pleading not guilty to all charges, Santos is scheduled to stand trial in September, and hinted at the possibility of a plea deal in December.
“Expelled Congressman George Santos disgraced the United States Congress with his presence at the State of the Union last night,” remarked Torres in a statement.
“Santos was thrown out of the House on a bipartisan basis after a litany of lies, alleged crimes, sideshows, and embarrassments on the national stage.”
Torres, a Democrat from New York, highlighted the need for higher standards in Congress, stating, “we have to be better than this.”
“Name me any other example where you can get publicly fired from your job, leave in absolute disgrace, but maintain the right to come to your old workplace as you please,” Torres added.
“I view serving in Congress as the privilege of my lifetime – we cannot allow those who make a mockery of this institution to keep the perks of the job after they’ve been expelled.”
In a special election last month, Representative Thomas Suozzi flipped the seat back blue in New York’s 3rd Congressional District.
Santos announced his bid to challenge Republican Representative Nick LaLota in New York’s 1st Congressional District after Biden’s Thursday address.
“Tonight, I want to announce that I will be returning to the arena of politics and challenging Nick for the battle over #NY1,” Santos tweeted.
