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Tag: george santos
Soft On Crime: Trump Keeps Pardoning Corrupt Republican Fraudsters

Soft On Crime: Trump Keeps Pardoning Corrupt Republican Fraudsters

President Donald Trump added to his growing list of shady pardons after it was announced on Friday that he granted the honor to two Republicans convicted for fraud.

Trump pardoned Glen Casada, former speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives, along with his former chief of staff Cade Cothren. Casada and Cothren were convicted in September on multiple charges and sentenced to 36 months and 30 months in federal prison, respectively.

In a release at the time of their conviction, the FBI noted that the men had been found guilty of fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy. The government’s case alleged that Casada and Cothren defrauded the state by funneling over $50,000 of state funds to a sham business they set up that sent mail on behalf of lawmakers.

“The defendants abused their power as government officials and defrauded taxpayers for their own enrichment,” acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti said at the time.

The Trump administration justified the pardon a mere 45 days later by alleging that the Biden administration’s prosecution of the two men was overzealous. In fact, the investigation began during Trump’s first term, and the duplicitous duo was tried in front of a judge appointed by Trump himself.

The case is the latest in a series of pardons and commutations by Trump of convicted criminals.

In October he pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao after Zhao directed millions of dollars to the Trump family’s crypto dealings.

That same month he commuted the sentence of disgraced former Rep. George Santos (R-NY), despite his conviction on fraud charges after he was expelled from Congress.

Most infamously, Trump pardoned hundreds of his supporters who stormed and attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, freeing them to commit all-new crimes—now with a presidential stamp of approval.

Trump has claimed that he is in favor of “law and order” to justify his constant stream of attacks on cities led by Democratic officials. But his stream of pardons and other dodgy actions reveal just how soft Trump— a convicted felon himself—is on crime.

Margie Greene Asking Trump To Pardon Felon Santos

Margie Greene Asking Trump To Pardon Felon Santos

Let it never be said that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is not loyal to her friends.

The Georgia Republican out here pleading former Rep. George Santos’ case, trying to get President Donald Trump to commute his sentence and free him from his grueling confinement, which has lasted … about 12 days. And without naming names, she’s happy to insinuate that far worse criminals than Santos still roam the halls of Congress.

Before diving into the merits of whether Trump should grant Santos mercy, let’s speculate about whom Greene could be referring to.

Fortunately, GovTrack, a government transparency group, maintains a database about legislator misconduct. Maybe Greene is referring to Rep. Andrew Ogles, the Tennessee Republican so eager to stay in Trump’s good graces that he wants to amend the Constitution so Trump can serve a third term. Ogles is the subject of an ethics complaint thanks to a discrepancy in his financial disclosures. Ogles also possesses the Santos-like penchant for inflating his resume.

Or maybe Texas’ Troy Nehls? In 2024, the Office of Congressional Ethics found that Nehls may have made illegal campaign disbursements and appears to not have provided complete financial disclosures. Nehls still has his job, though, and little has happened with that complaint.

And thanks to the GOP controlling the House, Rep. Wesley Hunt and Rep. Ronny Jackson, both of Texas, are still hanging about despite the OCE determining that they had violated campaign finance standards.

According to Greene, Santos’ sentence is unfair because a seven-year prison sentence for

“campaign-related charges” is too much, so she’s asking the Office of the Pardon Attorney to urge Trump to commute Santos’ sentence. Of course, her characterization of Santos’ crimes is incorrect. Santos deceived donors, spent campaign funds on personal items, inflated the amount of donations he received so he could qualify for funds and assistance from the national GOP, did some identity fraud by charging donors’ credit cards without their authorization, committed some unemployment insurance fraud, and lied to the House.

However, Greene might be in luck: The extremely morally flexible Ed Martin now runs the Office of the Pardon Attorney. So she probably has a shot at getting this request in front of Trump’s eyeballs at the bare minimum.

It’s somewhat surprising Trump hasn’t already pardoned Santos, since Trump apparently loves to pardon people who have committed crimes that remind him of his own crimes. He’s already granted clemency to 16 corrupt politicians, including former New York Rep. Michael Grimm, who hid income and lied on his tax forms, and Michele Fiore, a former Las Vegas city council member, for her diversion of donations for a memorial to a slain police officer to her own plastic surgery needs.

It isn’t like Trump is unaware of Santos’ plight, either. Last Friday, Trump mentioned he had the power to pardon Santos, musing, “He lied like hell, and I didn’t know him. … But he was 100% for Trump. I might’ve met him. Maybe, maybe not, but he was a congressman and his vote was solid.”

It’s the same weird preemptive statement he made about his authority to pardon convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, reminding the world that he’s perfectly happy to pardon the scuzziest people, given enough incentive.

And that might be Santos’ problem. He lacks the ability to provide Trump with the kind of incentive that woos him into pardons. Sure, Santos is notorious, but he’s not a reality star like Todd and Julie Chrisley, who, thanks to Trump, are free and clear of their 2022 convictions for fraud and tax evasion. And Santos didn’t donate millions to a pro-Trump campaign fund.

Ever the inveterate liar, Santos even had to lie about this. Per Santos, his pardon was a done deal, but then House Speaker Mike Johnson “blocked” it, which is not a thing. The presidential pardon power is absolute, not subject to veto by the speaker of the House. Santos knows this, but he likely just can’t stop himself.

Meanwhile, Greene will continue her efforts to free her friend. Greene and Santos could be a dynamic duo once again, cozying up side-by-side in Congress to spin conspiracy theories together. Now all they need is Trump.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

George Santos

Right-Wing Pundits Yearning For Santos After Special Election Defeat

Conservative media figures are expressing regret for the expulsion of disgraced former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) following the Democratic victory in last night’s special election to fill his seat. Many of them are blaming Republican congressional leadership and GOP institutions for creating an opening for Democrats to retake a seat in the U.S. House by allowing Santos to be expelled, ignoring political reporting that immigration was a key issue in the race after right-wing media and former President Donald Trump helped the GOP sink a bipartisan immigration deal just a week prior to the election.

  • A Democrat won the special election for Santos’ House seat
    • Democrat Tom Suozzi won the New York special election to fill the seat left vacant after Santos was expelled from the House. From The Associated Press: “Suozzi defeated Republican Mazi Pilip to take the seat that was left vacant when George Santos, also a Republican, was expelled from Congress. The victory marks a return to Washington for Suozzi, who represented the district for three terms before giving it up to run, unsuccessfully, for governor.” [The Associated Press, 2/14/24]
    • Congress voted on December 1, 2023, to expel Santos — who faces multiple criminal charges — in a bipartisan 311-114 vote over campaign finance violations, fraudulent schemes, and blatant lies outlined in a House Ethics Committee report. The first-term GOP representative, who announced he would not seek reelection following the report, is also facing a 23-count federal indictment and a Justice Department investigation into the allegations — which include misusing campaign funds to pay for Botox and OnlyFans, “a subscription-based website where people sell adult content.” [The Associated Press, 12/1/23; CBS, 11/16/23; CNN, 11/16/23]
  • Immigration was a key issue in the special election, and right-wing media just pushed the GOP to sink a bipartisan immigration bill
    • The New York Times reported that Suozzi “went on the attack” when his opponent “condemned a bipartisan Senate deal that included stiff border security provisions that conservatives had demanded.” [The New York Times, 2/13/24]
    • Analyzing the special election’s aftermath, The Washington Post noted, “The GOP’s immigration focus didn’t work” — in part because Suozzi supported immigration reforms while his opponent “echoed GOP attacks” against “the bipartisan Senate deal that Republicans ultimately torpedoed last week.” [The Washington Post, 2/13/24]

      • The Hill: Suozzi’s opponent “centered much of her campaign messaging around immigration as the issue received widespread attention both nationwide and in the district.” The Hill reported that polling found the district’s voters “considered immigration more important than any other issue.” [The Hill, 2/14/24]
      • Conservative media pushed multiple myths about immigration and a bipartisan Senate bill to convince Republicans to kill it. After relentless opposition from conservative media, former President Donald Trump, and House Republicans, GOP senators on February 7 blocked a compromise bill that extracted major immigration policy concessions from Democrats in exchange for security aid for Ukraine and other U.S. allies. In the days and weeks leading up to the bill’s defeat, conservative media pushed multiple myths about the border deal to stir up enough opposition to block it — even though the bill itself was negotiated by conservative Sen. James Lankford (R-OK). [Media Matters, 2/12/24]
      • Conservative media attacked GOP supporters of the bipartisan bill. After the bill’s text was released, right-wing media suggested that supportive lawmakers were betraying their party and constituents. Weeks before the bill was finished, however, right-wing media were already threatening to oust Republicans who worked on the deal. [Media Matters, 2/7/24, 1/19/24]
    • Following the Democratic victory, conservatives criticized Republicans for allowing the expulsion of Santos
      • NewsBusters Executive Editor Tim Graham: “If I were a pol, I would have voted against dumping” Santos. Graham wrote “Santos didn't deserve the seat, but the majority is paper-thin” to justify keeping Santos in the House. [Twitter/X, 2/14/24]
      • National Review senior writer Dan McLaughlin: “I still think the House - both parties - will live to regret breaking longstanding norms to expel Santos.” McLaughlin also criticized the House GOP leadership’s “choice to put a reputation for ethical standards above the party's immediate self-interest.” [Twitter/X, 2/13/24]
      • Conservative talk radio host Bo Snerdley: “Congrats to the Republican Party Republicans threw out Santos and got a Democrat.” [Twitter/X, 2/13/24]
      • Conservative Substack author @amuse: “Unforced Error: The GOP should have allowed Santos to have his day in court before expelling him. We barely could push through an impeachment today - now that he’s been replaced by a Democrat we’d lose that vote tomorrow.” [Twitter/X, 2/13/24]
    • Right-wing online show host Benny Johnson: “The outcome of expelling George Santos: Democrats gain a seat. Republicans are useless and are addicted to losing.” [Twitter/X, 2/13/24]
    • Students for Trump founder Ryan Fournier: “They removed George Santos and a Democrat takes the seat. Pathetic.” Fournier added in a follow-up post, “GUT THE RNC.” [Twitter/X, 2/13/24, 2/13/24]
    • Daily Wire host Michael Knowles: “We kicked George Santos out of Congress for some reason and, you’re going to be shocked to hear it, a Democrat won his seat.” Knowles complained that “we kicked out a Republican congressman because he’s a weirdo” and, after going off on a racist tangent against Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), said: “You’re going to give up potentially a razor-thin Republican majority — for what? To stand on the principles that no one applies?” [The Daily Wire, The Michael Knowles Show, 2/14/24]
    • Fox & Friends host Lawrence Jones: “The real problem, guys, is, why did they give up the seat to begin with?” Jones added: “I understand people have criticism, rightfully, of George Santos. But you should allow the voters to decide. Instead, the Democrats stay together again, and Republicans voted to get rid of one of their members. Great job, now you’ve lost the seat, and you can't get anything passed.” Jones’ co-hosts followed up by explaining that Santos was a fraud and the ethics report on him was damning. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 2/14/24]

Reprinted with permission from Media Matters.

George Santos

Santos Threatens House Republicans With Corruption 'Receipts' (VIDEO)

On Sunday, pathological backstory-fabricator George Santos granted an interview to a local CBS affiliate in New York. Appearing on “The Point with Marcia Kramer,” the ousted Congress member declared that he had learned from his mistakes and that he was going to atone by exposing all of the corruption he saw in Washington—and named fellow Republicans as some of the biggest offenders.

Fellow Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis from New York’s 11th District has been one of Santos’ favored targets. He has publicly called Malliotakis corrupt, intimating that she has used her position to commit insider trading violations. Asked about his claims, Santos said, “I saw how the sausage is made and I have receipts and I'm willing to show the American people. You don't need to believe me; believe the proof and the evidence,” and promised to reveal this evidence in the near future."

George Santos: I mean, NicoleMallioStockTips, as I call her now—I mean, she's insider trading and it's almost evident if you look at her disclosures … I mean, it's not hard to see a member—

Marcia Kramer: —How do we prove that?

Santos: It's very easy. She receives classified briefings as a member of the Ways and Means Committee. It takes a very competent FBI officer to go look at her trading and how it works and just look at her communication. This is all digitized these days. It's not hard to see a person saying, “Hey, do this trade, I just got a good tip.”

Kramer: She's pushed back on that, though.

Santos: Well, they all push back. But can somebody explain to me how is it that she miraculously becomes a member of the committee and then she's doing trades on NYCB, with the Signature Bank collapse, just the day before having an 80% stock hike? That's not a lucky trade, Marcia. That's a very well-informed trade.


Malliotakis is one of the Republicans who voted to expel Santos from the House. The trade Santos is referring to took place earlier this year and absolutely reeks of insider trading. She is just one of the Republicans Santos targeted on social media the same evening as his expulsion, alleging vast corruption. That’s when he first called her “Nicole MallioStockTips,” saying she was “a dirty dishonorable swamp creature selling the American people down a river for her own benefit.” Good times with what sounds like great people!

Santos is facing serious election and financial fraud charges himself, and told Kramer that a plea deal is not off the table. Santos’ trial is set for September 2024, but CBS is reporting that the Department of Justice will be trying to get Santos’ trial moved up to May 2024. Life comes at you fast!

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos

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