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New York Rep. George Santos and Utah Sen. Mitt Romney had a heated exchange on the House floor before Tuesday’s State of the Union speech, with the Republican senator telling the gay Republican representative he didn’t belong in Congress.
Before President Joe Biden’s speech, Romney and Santos were seen having a brief but tense conversation. Romney, a member of the upper chamber, glared at and exchanged words with Santos, a lower chamber member, who grinned, nodded, and turned away before speaking in Romney’s direction after the senator had moved on.
Santos had positioned himself along the center aisle, in highly sought-after, high-visible seats that would put the embattled congressman face-to-face with dignitaries entering the chamber and the president himself.
After the speech, Romney told a scrum of reporters that he didn’t remember exactly what he said but that he let Santos know that his attendance and location were inappropriate.
“I didn’t expect that he’d be standing there trying to shake hands with every senator and the president of the United States,” Romney said.
“Given the fact that he’s under ethics investigation, he should be sitting in the back row and staying quiet instead of parading in front of the president and people coming into the room,” he added.
\u201cSenator Mitt Romney was not going to be subjected to the shenanigans of George Santos without comment.\u201d
— Symone D. Sanders-Townsend (@Symone D. Sanders-Townsend)
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Federal, state, and local investigations have been started into the first-year lawmaker’s biography and campaign finances.
According to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Santos was the subject of complaints to the House Ethics Committee, but the committee has not yet convened.
Semafor reporter Kadia Goba said that Santos claimed more choice words were spoken.
“Rep. George Santos describes, to me, his exchange with Sen. Mitt Romney during the State of the Union tonight,” she tweeted. “Mitt: You don’t belong here. Santos: Go tell that to the 142K that voted for me. Mitt: You’re an ass. Santos: You’re a much bigger asshole.”
\u201cRep. George Santos describes, to me, his exchange with Sen. Mitt Romney during the State of the Union tonight:\n\nMitt: You don\u2019t belong here.\n\nSantos: Go tell that to the 142K that voted for me.\n\nMitt: You\u2019re an ass.\n\nSantos: You\u2019re a much bigger asshole.\u201d
Christopher Wiggins is The Advocate’s senior national reporter in Washington, D.C., covering the intersection of public policy and politics with LGBTQ+ lives, including The White House, U.S. Congress, Supreme Court, and federal agencies. He has written multiple cover story profiles for The Advocate’s print magazine, profiling figures like Delaware Congresswoman Sarah McBride, longtime LGBTQ+ ally Vice President Kamala Harris, and ABC Good Morning America Weekend anchor Gio Benitez. Wiggins is committed to amplifying untold stories, especially as the second Trump administration’s policies impact LGBTQ+ (and particularly transgender) rights, and can be reached at christopher.wiggins@equalpride.com or on BlueSky at cwnewser.bsky.social; whistleblowers can securely contact him on Signal at cwdc.98.
Christopher Wiggins is The Advocate’s senior national reporter in Washington, D.C., covering the intersection of public policy and politics with LGBTQ+ lives, including The White House, U.S. Congress, Supreme Court, and federal agencies. He has written multiple cover story profiles for The Advocate’s print magazine, profiling figures like Delaware Congresswoman Sarah McBride, longtime LGBTQ+ ally Vice President Kamala Harris, and ABC Good Morning America Weekend anchor Gio Benitez. Wiggins is committed to amplifying untold stories, especially as the second Trump administration’s policies impact LGBTQ+ (and particularly transgender) rights, and can be reached at christopher.wiggins@equalpride.com or on BlueSky at cwnewser.bsky.social; whistleblowers can securely contact him on Signal at cwdc.98.
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