George Santos Needs to 'Shut Up Completely,' Lawyer Advises

George Santos needs to "shut up completely," a lawyer has said after the freshman Republican congressman attempted to explain himself to the press after being indicted on 13 federal charges.

The representative for New York appeared outside a courthouse in Central Islip on Wednesday after pleading not guilty to seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making materially false statements to the House of Representatives.

Santos was elected to Congress in the 2022 midterms, but was shortly afterward dogged by reports concerning his statements about his personal and professional history, which led to constituents calling for his resignation.

The Republican's campaign trail lies included that he had graduated from college, that he had previously worked for Goldman Sachs, that he owned 13 properties, and had misrepresented any Jewish heritage he may have. He later admitted to "embellishing" his resume.

Santos appeared in a fighting spirit when he emerged from court, vowing to defeat the charges against him and describing the case as a "witch hunt."

Among the allegations against him, Santos is accused of lying about his finances on congressional disclosure documents and receiving unemployment benefits while earning $120,000 as a regional director of a company that federal investigators closed in 2021 over claims it may have been a Ponzi scheme.

Asked about his allegedly claiming unemployment benefits while on a six-figure salary by ABC's Rachel Scott, Santos responded: "This is part of my defense, this is inaccurate information and I will get to clear my name on this.

"During the pandemic, it wasn't very clear," he added. "I don't understand where the government's getting their information, but I will present my facts."

When probed again about the claim, Santos said: "My employment was changed during the time; I don't understand where the government's coming from."

Harry Litman, a former federal attorney and legal affairs commentator, suggested this defense lacked credibility as it appeared to argue that it "wasn't clear that you couldn't get unemployment benefits if you were working."

"He's now stuck with this nonsense explanation," the lawyer tweeted on Wednesday, adding: "He needs to shut up completely. Look for him to retreat soon to the 'can't talk about pending charges' line."

Santos' attorney declined to comment when approached by Newsweek on Thursday.

The 34-year-old congressman is also alleged to have created a company to funnel political donations into, which prosecutors say were then used for personal expenses.

Santos was released on a $500,000 bond following his arraignment, around five hours after turning himself in, the Associated Press reported. He also surrendered his passport and, if convicted, could face up to 20 years in prison.

"I'm going to fight my battle," Santos told reporters after the hearing. "I'm going to deliver. I'm going to fight the witch hunt. I am going to take care of clearing my name, and I look forward to doing that."

Update 05/12/23, 2:28 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include a response from Santos' attorney.