Former Republican Congressman George Santos compared his situation to that of Jesus Christ in an interview on Sunday.
Santos was sentenced to more than seven years in prison after he was convicted of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Trump commuted his sentence on Friday after he served just three months of his prison sentence.
In an interview with CNN’s State of the Union, Santos fired back at critics of Trump’s decision to free him from jail, evoking ‘Jesus Christ on the cross’ to argue that Trump’s critics would find fault in just about anything.
“Pardon me if I’m not paying too much attention to the pearl-clutching of the outrage of my critics and of the people, predominantly on the left, who are going to go out there and try to make a big deal out of something like this,” Santos told host Dana Bash. “It is known that presidents have the power of the pardon and the clemency, which are plenary. And they’re extended at their will.”
He continued: “People are going to like me. People are gonna hate me. It doesn’t matter whoever gets clemency in the future, or whoever that person might be. I’m pretty confident if President Trump had pardoned Jesus Christ off the cross, he would have had critics. So that’s just the reality of our country.”
Santos was elected in 2022 and quickly came under scrutiny after the New York Times published an investigation revealing that he had lied on his resume, including having a university degree and working for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.
It was also revealed that Santos stole money from a fundraiser for a dying dog and that he lied about his mother surviving the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
He was expelled from the House in 2023 after an Ethics Committee investigation report alleged that he “blatantly stole” from his campaign and included accusations that he misused funds for lavish trips, botox and OnlyFans.
Santos tried to mount a comeback in 2024 but ended his congressional bid after failing to raise money. He said on Sunday that he’s “all politicked out” and doesn’t see himself running for Congress anytime soon.
