President Trump orders immediate release of George Santos
President Trump announced on social media that former Congressman George Santos’ sentence would be commuted by seven years.
President Donald Trump commuted former Congressman George Santos’ seven-year prison sentence and released him on October 17th.
Mr. Santos, a 37-year-old Republican from New York, turned himself in on July 25 at the Federal Correctional Facility Flatiron Satellite Camp in New Jersey and was sentenced to seven years in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. As part of his argument, he admitted to filing false campaign finance reports, fraudulently charging donors’ credit cards and fraudulently receiving unemployment benefits, among other actions that began years before he ran for Congress in 2022.
Santos represented Queens and parts of Long Island for 11 months. He recently published an open letter directly addressing President Trump (who has previously pardoned prominent supporters) using flattering language.
In a post on Truth Social, President Trump wrote, “George Santos was a ‘thug’ in some ways, but there are many thugs in this country who should not be sentenced to seven years in prison.” “At least Santos always had the courage, the conviction, and the intelligence to vote Republican! George has been in solitary confinement for long periods of time and has suffered horrific abuse for all to see. That’s why I just signed a commutation of sentence that will immediately release George Santos from prison. Good luck George, have a great life!”
Santos was also ordered to pay more than $370,000 in restitution and forfeit an additional $200,000.
Santos was exposed as a habitual liar after his victory. He falsely claimed to work for a prestigious Wall Street firm, be Jewish, be a relative of Holocaust survivors, and have multiple degrees from a university he never attended. The report also revealed that Santos was charged with fabricating a vast real estate portfolio, concealing his past marital status and writing fraudulent checks in Brazil, which he later admitted.
He was expelled from Congress in a bipartisan vote following the release of the House Ethics Report.
Bipartisan condemnation of Santos also supported by some Republicans
After Santos’ crimes were revealed, many of his fellow Republicans harshly criticized him. New York Congressman Mike Lawler said Santos was a “sociopath” who was “deceiving voters and donors,” adding that “the evidence is overwhelming.”
Some continued to hold that position even after President Trump’s announcement.
Rep. Andrew Garbarino, a Long Island Republican, said he complained about Mr. Santos’ willingness to plead guilty to federal crimes and then have to serve time in prison. “The victims of Mr. Santos’ crimes, including the people he stole from and the voters he defrauded, have yet to fully recover,” Garbarino said in a statement. “He has shown no remorse whatsoever. Spending less than three months in prison is not justice.”
But Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, an ardent Trump supporter with a maverick personality, asked President Trump in July to commute Santos’ prison sentence.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, immediately criticized Santos’ ouster on social media.
“Donald Trump has time to release serial fraudster George Santos from prison,” Jeffries wrote. “But he won’t bother addressing the Republican health crisis that is devastating working class Americans. Extremists insult you every day.”
A get-out-of-jail-free card for Trump supporters?
Since his first term, Trump has pardoned some close allies for crimes such as financial fraud and witness tampering.
Among the celebrities pardoned is real estate billionaire Charles Kushner, father of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Former President Trump’s chief strategist Steve Bannon and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Immediately after taking office on January 20, 2025, Trump pardoned over 1,500 rioters who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 to prevent the certification of his defeat against Joe Biden.
In April, President Trump pardoned Paul Walczak for tax crimes three weeks after his mother attended a $1 million per person fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.
Contributor: Michelle Del Rey; Eduardo Cuevas. sarah wire; Sudiksha Kochi
