Rep. George Santos poised to make deal to avoid prosecution in Brazil fraud case
NEW YORK -- One day after embattled Rep. George Santos pleaded not guilty to federal fraud and money laundering charges, a deal Santos struck with Brazilian authorities to avoid prosecution in a fraud case there was expected to be finalized.
Santos was back in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, followed by a throng of reporters, a day after he pleaded not guilty to federal fraud, money laundering and making false statements in connection with his 2022 Congressional campaign.
"I'm going to fight the witch hunt. I'm going to take care of clearing my name," Santos said Wednesday.
But now the embattled congressman is not trying to clear his name; he's trying to avoid prosecution in a 15-year-old stolen checkbook case in Rio de Janeiro.
Santos faced the Brazilian judge over Zoom; he couldn't go there, anyway, since federal authorities confiscated his passport Wednesday.
He tried.to finalize a deal with local authorities to pay a fine after he reportedly stole a checkbook in 2008 and used it to purchase some $1,300 worth of clothes and shoes.
Prosecutors want Santos to pay a fine of nearly $4,900. In exchange, he has to formally confess to the crime.
There is a certain symmetry to the two cases; both involve an apparent desire to look good.
One of the charges in the federal case involves allegations he solicited funds from donors who believed they were contributing to his campaign. Instead, prosecutors say, Santos used the money for personal expenses like designer clothes.
"I have made clear, both to Speaker McCarthy and others, that I find the whole George Santos thing an untenable situation. It's beyond the pale," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.
Adding to Santos' woes, now Jeffries is blaming Santos for the failure of Republicans to negotiate a debt ceiling deal.
"House Republicans are going to try to pass legislation that will restrict, if not end, the ability of the federal government to confront unemployment insurance fraud ... And perhaps that explains why my Republican colleagues have failed to take any action to remove someone who was clearly unfit to serve in the people's House," he said.
All this as Santos is raising money to try to stay in office.
