Tulsi Gabbard roasts GOP congressman-elect for ‘blatant lies’

Republican Congressman-elect George Santos, who admitted to making up facts about his biography, was given a dressing down by former presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard during a Fox News interview.

Gabbard, a former Democrat who joined the conservative news network as a paid contributor in November, confronted Santos on Tuesday in what was his first televised appearance since admitting to “embellishing” his resume.

Other lawmakers have lied to the American people in the past and have gotten away with it, but Santos had been telling “blatant lies,” she said, before asking, “Do you have no shame?” The man, who is set to represent the 3rd congressional district of New York, tried to deflect the blame.

“Tulsi, I can say the same thing about the Democrats,” he said. “Look at Joe Biden. Joe Biden has been lying to the American people for 40 years. He’s the president of the United States. Democrats resoundingly support him. Do they have no shame?” 

Gabbard said the issue is not about party politics but about Santos’ relationship with his constituents and whether they can trust anything he says on their behalf. The congressman-elect said critics are “nitpicking” at him and that he is more than a “facade.”

Santos claimed that at least some of the accusations against him are not accurate – in particular, his claims of having worked for financial giants Goldman Sachs and Citigroup were not “false” but “debatable,” he explained. Both firms have said they have no records that they had employed Santos.

“I can sit down and explain to you what you can do in private equity … via servicing limited partners and general partners. And we can have this discussion that goes well above the American people’s head,” he said.

Gabbard responded that he had just insulted voters by implying they were not smart enough to understand his clarifications, which Santos denied doing.

Santos ran as an openly gay Republican. His questionable bio went unnoticed during his campaign and came to light after the New York Times published an expose about it last week. He later admitted to deceiving the public about his education, career, and even family history, though he denied he had ever “claimed to be Jewish.”