George Santos Comes to Washington. It Could Be Awkward. - The New York Times

Politics|George Santos Comes to Washington. It Could Be Awkward.

WASHINGTON — Representative-elect George Santos has been hard to pin down.

“No 1 tin find him,” Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York and the incoming number leader, said astatine a quality league past week, pressing for answers connected the geyser of falsehoods astir Mr. Santos’s background that person been revealed since helium flipped a Democratic spot connected Long Island successful November.

But opening connected Tuesday, Mr. Santos volition not beryllium capable to fell anymore.

He is to get connected Capitol Hill for what is shaping up arsenic a chaotic opening time of the 118th Congress, possibly arsenic the astir notorious subordinate of a caller House Republican bulk that is toiling to flooded heavy divisions arsenic it assumes power and the speakership is inactive up successful the air.

It volition astir apt beryllium an awkward infinitesimal for Mr. Santos, who volition get his archetypal sensation of navigating the Capitol and its all-permeating property corps successful the midst of a ungraded of his ain making.

He is nether the shadiness of progressive investigations by national and section prosecutors into imaginable transgression enactment during his 2 legislature campaigns. Prosecutors told The New York Times connected Monday that Brazilian instrumentality enforcement authorities intended to revive fraud charges against him stemming from an incidental successful 2008 regarding a stolen checkbook.

Democrats are already calling for him to springiness up his seat, and members of his ain enactment are demanding much elaborate explanations of his conduct.

That includes making up claims astir his résumé, his education, his ties to Wall Street firms and his charitable endeavors — each of which person been revealed arsenic portion of a phantasy persona created arsenic the backbone of his transportation to voters.

In summation to his background, Mr. Santos has misrepresented parts of his finances and filed incomplete oregon inaccurate legislature disclosures. He has besides claimed that helium is Jewish and the descendant of Holocaust survivors. Mr. Santos is Catholic.

Federal and section prosecutors are investigating whether helium committed crimes involving his finances oregon misleading statements.

Mr. Santos, the archetypal openly cheery Republican to triumph a House spot arsenic a non-incumbent, has yet to connection a afloat accounting to the voters who elected him based connected a mostly made-up biography. He has admitted to “embellishing” his résumé and to the information that helium did not postgraduate from immoderate instauration of higher education.

He has promised to archer his full communicative astatine immoderate point.

Still, it remains unclear what, if anything, Republicans volition bash to punish him, oregon however helium volition take to comport himself erstwhile helium is sworn successful connected Tuesday. Representative Kevin McCarthy, Republican of California and the number leader, cannot spend to suffer a azygous ballot arsenic helium labors to triumph the speakership. He has remained soundless astir Mr. Santos and his presumption successful the Republican conference.

Mr. McCarthy, for now, has much pressing concerns, similar his ain governmental future, to contend with.

And for now, Mr. Santos appears acceptable to support moving forward.

“It was an grant to circuit the United States Merchant Marine Academy successful Kings Point today,” he tweeted 3 days aft Christmas, with a photograph of him and a ample ship’s wheel. “In Congress, I look guardant to moving alongside them to afloat utilize this astonishing assets we person successful our ain backyard.”