Southeast Missouri congressman says Santos expulsion broke precedent

Southeast Missouri's congressman said the recent expulsion of a U.S. representative has changed the calculus of what should lead to removing an elected federal official.

U.S. representatives voted 311-114 on Friday, Dec. 1, to expel Rep. George Santos, a New York Republican. The vote came in the wake of a House ethics report finding "overwhelming evidence" Santos had broken the law and used his position for his own profit. Expelling a representative requires a two-thirds majority vote of the chamber.

Santos became only the sixth representative expelled from the body, a point Rep. Jason Smith, who represents Southeast Missouri, noted.

"Until last week, the House of Representatives had a very high bar for expelling its members. Of the only five who had ever been expelled, three were expelled for joining the Confederacy, and two for being convicted of crimes. The new precedent that has been set is that members can be expelled if they are believed to have behaved or acted in an inappropriate or criminal manner, even if they never have been found guilty of any crime. While I voted to maintain the precedent, I will certainly consider this new lower bar the next time a motion to expel a member is brought to the floor."

Seeking to remain in office, Santos had appealed to colleagues to let the court process play out. He warned of the precedent they would set by expelling a member not yet convicted of a crime.

"This will haunt them in the future," Santos told lawmakers Nov. 30 as they debated his removal.

Santos faces federal charges for alleged fraud, stealing from his campaign and lying to Congress. Among the charges is that Santos stole the identities of campaign donors and used their credit cards to make thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges for personal gain.

The expulsion reduces the Republican advantage over Democrats in the House to 221-213.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has said she will likely call a February special election to fill the seat.