Jennifer DeSena, a town official in Nassau County on New York’s Long Island, which is the area in which controversial GOP Congressman George Santos was elected, discussed her opposition to the first-term House member in a new CNN interview in which she characterized him as seemingly a threat to security.
She is among the prominent Republicans, a list that includes even the chairperson of the New York state Republican Party along with local figures, who are pushing for Santos to resign, which he has predictably resisted. Santos was caught in seemingly only increasingly wide-ranging lies about his background covering his educational and work experience, in addition to what seem like lies about basic facts of his family history. He also faces questions — and investigations, including reportedly from a local federal prosecutor’s office — into his finances, including how he both raised and spent money. Asked on CNN about the resistance from most Republicans in Congress, save several members from New York, towards going after Santos, DeSena was persistent.
“I’ll tell you, the Congressmen from Long Island are not worried about holding on to that slim majority. They are united,” she told CNN. “By my count, it’s nine Republican Congressmembers have called on him to resign. So, they’re not worried about holding on to a majority. They’re worried about a person who lies gratuitously about everything. About his grandparents, about having knee replacement surgery, about having employees who died in the Pulse nightclub massacre. It’s a little worrisome that he doesn’t seem to be — he doesn’t seem to need to tell the truth. And that’s worrisome. Frankly, I think he’s a threat. I think he’s a safety threat in Congress. Because there are serious questions about where he has received funds from, and I don’t think he should receive the committee assignments that are being discussed. I think that he’s a threat.”
DeSena also said Santos — who has sometimes gone by different versions of his name — wouldn’t have been welcome at a local GOP event recently held in the area. Among the financial questions are how exactly he was able to fuel nearly three-quarters of a million dollars that he personally loaned his campaign despite a documented and recent past of financial troubles. There’s also the spending, including dozens of transactions conveniently reported at $199.99 — a cent below where the Federal Election Commission requires documentation like a receipt. Watch DeSena’s CNN interview below:
