Former Republican congressman George Santos, who lasted an astonishing 11 months in that role, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and identity theft in federal court on Monday, just a few weeks ahead of when his trial was due to begin. His sentencing will be in early February, and will likely result in a sentence of at least six years in federal prison, considering he still owes over $570,000 in restitution and forfeiture. The guilty plea is a stunning about-face for the Baruch College volleyball star, NYU M.B.A., Goldman Sachs and Citigroup alum, animal charity founder, Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark Broadway producer, Cameo celeb-for-hire, Jew-ish former representative from New York (guess which one of the titles on that list is real?!), who had previously been bullish about his innocence. From The Associated Press reporting:

George Santos, who spun lies about his life into an 11-month stint in Congress, pleaded guilty Monday to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in a case that led to his expulsion from office. He blamed his ambition for clouding his judgment and said he was “flooded with deep regret.”

Santos, 36, is likely to spend at least six years in prison and owes more than $570,000 in restitution and forfeiture after tearfully admitting that he duped voters, deceived donors and stole the identities of 11 people, including his own family members, to make donations to his campaign.

Santos’ guilty plea in federal court on Long Island came weeks before the case was to go to trial, punctuating one of the more bizarre stories in modern political lore. He remains free on bond awaiting sentencing Feb. 7.

“I betrayed the trust of my constituents and supporters. I deeply regret my conduct,” the former New York representative said, his voice trembling as he entered the plea.

Santos was elected in 2022 after bandying stories — later proven false — about his wealth and background, including a lie that his mother perished in the 9/11 attacks. As his biography unraveled, Santos went to great lengths to defend himself, once saying he was “Jew-ish,” not Jewish, when confronted about his campaign claim that his grandparents had fled the Holocaust.

Once regarded as a rising Republican star after flipping a district covering parts of Queens and Long Island’s Gold Coast, Santos faced scrutiny even before taking office. Reports he lied about having a career at top Wall Street firms and a college degree were followed by questions about how he funded his campaign.

Outside court, Santos told reporters Monday his political ambitions led him “to make decisions that were unethical.”

“Pleading guilty is a step I never imagined I’d take, but it is a necessary one because it is the right thing to do,” Santos said. “It’s not only a recognition of my misrepresentation to others, but more profoundly, it is my own recognition of the lies I told myself over these past years.”

U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said Santos, in pleading guilty, told the truth “after years of telling lies.”

“And that truth is he is a criminal,” Peace said.

Santos was indicted last year on felony charges he stole from political donors, used campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses, lied to Congress about his wealth and collected unemployment benefits while working.

Additionally, Santos also admitted to “a litany of other crimes for which the court will hold him accountable at sentencing,” Peace said.

Among them: stealing multiple people’s credit card numbers and charging them for his campaign, tricking donors into giving money to a bogus nonprofit and using the cash to buy designer clothing and fabricating his personal wealth in a financial disclosure report to Congress.

A House Ethics Committee investigation last year found money Santos diverted to his personal bank accounts was used to pay credit card bills and make purchases at luxury retailer Hermes, beauty retailer Sephora and the adult content website OnlyFans.

[From AP News]

Wow, something must have really spooked him to finally concede and plead guilty. I’m not sure if I’m ready to fully buy his remorse, or that he’s seen the error of his (allegedly former) ways, at least not so suddenly and whole-heartedly. But I suppose he could get there in time. Possibly. But then my interest was piqued by the “more than $570,000” sum total he owes. Funny, it’s just a bit less than the $750,000 he was suing Jimmy Kimmel for — on allegations of copyright infringement and fraud — over Kimmel’s “Will Santos Say It?” segments, wherein Kimmel’s staff used aliases to purchase Cameo videos of Santos saying crazy sh-t. That lawsuit lives rent-free in my head, thanks to its accusation that Kimmel “took advantage of Santos’ gregarious personality.” Well everything’s coming home to roost at once for Santos, because also on Monday, a separate Manhattan federal court tossed out the suit against Kimmel, on the grounds of fair use. There was no verdict, however, on whether Santos has now, or ever had, a ‘gregarious personality’ under the eyes of the law, nor what legal bearing that may have had on this ruling.

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