Rep. George Santos, the New York Republican who apparently fabricated large parts of his resume and personal backstory, is denying that he dressed in drag after media reports claimed he performed in Brazilian pageants.
Several reporters spoke with drag performers in Brazil who claimed to have been acquaintances with Santos nearly 15 years ago when he allegedly performed in drag. Santos has admitted to lying about several key aspects of his employment and education history, prompting scrutiny of his past.
GEORGE SANTOS SCANDAL: A RUNNING LIST OF THE HOUSE REPUBLICANS’ MOST QUESTIONABLE CLAIMS
“The most recent obsession from the media claiming that I am a drag Queen or ‘performed’ as a drag Queen is categorically false,” he tweeted Thursday morning. “The media continues to make outrageous claims about my life while I am working to deliver results. I will not be distracted nor fazed by this.”
The most recent obsession from the media claiming that I am a drag Queen or “performed” as a drag Queen is categorically false.
The media continues to make outrageous claims about my life while I am working to deliver results.
I will not be distracted nor fazed by this.
— George Santos (@Santos4Congress) January 19, 2023
Reporter Marisa Kabas said Thursday she spoke to a drag queen who goes by Eula Rochard who knew Santos when he allegedly performed as Kitara Ravache while living near Rio de Janeiro around 2008. The source shared photos on Instagram of a drag queen who bears a resemblance to Santos.
More photos shared on Eula’s IG pic.twitter.com/Pn671KyCkg
— Marisa Kabas (@MarisaKabas) January 19, 2023
Santos is openly gay but supports laws opposed by many LGBT activists, such as Florida’s bill that banned schools from discussing sex and gender with children younger than third grade.
“As a gay man, I stand proudly behind not teaching our children sex or sexual orientation,” Santos said in an April 2022 Facebook video.
Among Santos’s disputed claims were that he held finance degrees from Baruch College and New York University, worked for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, and is descended from Holocaust survivors. Media outlets have also called into question claims that his mother was in the World Trade Center on 9/11. Every other freshman GOP representative from New York has called for him to resign, as well as his home county Republican committee.
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GOP leadership has not pressed him to resign and allowed him to hold committee assignments. If Santos were to step down, it would leave House Republicans with an even slimmer majority than they currently have, as his seat was competitive and could flip to the Democratic column in a special election.
