(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Disgraced former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., is not leaving quietly a day after being expelled from Congress over accusations of fraud, misuse of campaign funds, and falsifying federal records.
In a series of Twitter posts, Santos directly targeted some of his former colleagues, criticizing what he deemed as their lack of accountability regarding their alleged illegal actions.
Among those singled out by Santos were Reps. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y.; Nick Lalota, R-N.Y.; Mike Lawler, R-N.Y.; and Rob Menendez, D-N.J. (son of Sen. Bob Menendez). Notably, these lawmakers were among the leading voices calling for Santos’s ousting.
Santos first aimed his criticism at Malliotakis, who voted for his expulsion. Santos pledged to file a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics (distinct from the House Ethics Committee) against Malliotakis for “questionable stock trading” since her appointment to the House Ways and Means Committee.
“Before joining the committee the congresswoman didn’t have an active trading habit or a high volume stake. The question is, what set of information is she trading with?” Santos questioned. This came hours after Malliotakis defended her vote to expel Santos in a video, further reducing her party’s already slim majority.
Next, Santos turned his attention to Lawler, a prominent voice among New York’s Republican delegation, who played a key role in ousting Santos.
Santos accused Lawler of potential money laundering by utilizing Checkmate Strategies, a firm Lawler is affiliated with, to pay for services linked to his congressional campaign.
“The concerning questions are; is Mr Lawler engaging in laundering money form his campaign to his firm then into his own pocket? I will let the Office of Congressional Ethics be the judge of that,” Santos said.
LaLota, also from the New York delegation, became the subject of Santos’s criticism. The expelled congressman accused LaLota of potentially misappropriating public funds from New York taxpayers due to his alleged simultaneous attendance at Hofstra for a JD while working at the state’s board of elections.
“It has been raised in the local media that congressman Lalota obtained his JD attending Hofstra in day school while he was supposed to be working at the Board of elections at the same time,” Santos claimed. “The questionable actions are? Did Rep Lalota no-show to his tax pay funded job while going to school and if so he can potential have stolen public funds form the tax payers of NY.”
Santos did not halt there, raising concerns about the Rob Menendez, son of embattled Sen. Menendez, who represents New Jersey’s 8th Congressional District. Santos specifically questioned the younger Menendez’s connections to his father, facing federal indictment over bribery allegations.
Santos’s accusations followed the House of Representatives’ vote to expel him, with a tally of 311 to 114 votes, including 105 Republicans voting for his expulsion.
This marked Santos as the sixth lawmaker in history to be expelled from Congress, further diminishing the Republicans’ narrow majority. Notably, he is the first lawmaker to be expelled since the Civil War without a criminal conviction or a recommendation from the House Ethics Committee for expulsion.
See Santos’ fired-up Twitter posts below:
Let’s talk about hypocrisy.
Can someone ask Nicole MalioStockTips when did she become a savant in stock trading?
The signature bank trades she did REEKS of insider trading much like Paul Pelosi’s every trade!
Nicole is in it for herself! Just look at her record and it speaks… https://t.co/PFZ2qfDdNm
— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) December 2, 2023
Monday I will be filling an official complaint with the Office of congressional Ethics against @NMalliotakis regarding her questionable stock trading since joining the Ways and Means committee this Congress.
Before joining the committee the congresswoman didn’t have an active…
— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) December 2, 2023
On Monday I will be filling an Ethics complaint against @RepMikeLawler for questionable campaign finance violations.
Congressman Lawler owns portion of Checkmate Strategies and he uses the same firm that he is a beneficiary of to pay for services related to his campaign.
The…
— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) December 2, 2023
Mondays 4th Ethics report will be filled on Congressman Menendez (not to be confused with the senator).
While congressman Menedez has not been invoked by the diligent investigation of the DOJ into his father, there remains a question of what did he know and when did he know it,…
— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) December 2, 2023
On Monday the 3rd ethics report I’ll be submitting to the Office of Congressional Ethics is on @RepLaLota.
It has been raised in the local media that congressman Lalota obtained his JD attending Hofstra in day school while he was supposed to be working at the Board of elections…
— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) December 2, 2023
