Last-Minute Allegations Against Santos Led to Expulsion, Says House Republican

Rep. David Joyce (R-OH), who sits on the House Ethics Committee, said a mass email from his colleague Rep. Max Miller (R-OH) may have been the final nail in the coffin for now ex-Rep. George Santos (R-NY).

CNN’s John Berman asked Joyce, “Can you tell me what you think swung the vote at the end? There actually seemed to be some momentum for keeping [Santos] in office in the minutes and hours before the actual vote. Was there one thing that you think made the difference?”

“Yesterday, I would have bet that the number would be 150 voting for expulsion, and today the number was about 105, I believe, and 112 voting to keep him here,” Joyce began, continuing:

But you know, one of the members came forward yesterday at the end of the talk, and then today came forward and put out the email for those who might not have understood where he was coming from, and explained that not only he, but his mother were ripped off by this campaign. And, so, when you start ripping off other members, if that’s not enough to convince people that maybe you shouldn’t be here, I don’t know what it’s going to take.

“Are you talking about your Ohio colleague Max Miller, that his statement, you think, made the difference there?” Berman asked.

“Correct…I think Max’s last-minute email to all the members determined the outcome for him, because they may not have believed my investigative report — sorry about that — but they believed Max when it’s coming personally from him, that he was ripped off, his mother was ripped off, and that he had to spend money to defend himself from the FCC’s allegations,” Joyce said.

Miller explained in his email, which was posted to X (formerly Twitter):

Earlier this year I learned that the Santos campaign had charged my personal credit card – and the personal card of my Mother – for contribution amounts that exceeded FEC limits. Neither my Mother nor I approved these charges or were aware of them. We have spent tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees in the resulting follow up.

Watch the clip above via CNN.