House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., will be removed from Congress if the House Ethics Committee finds the freshman lawmaker broke the law.
McCarthy, unlike members of his GOP caucus, mostly has defended Santos, who has admitted to falsifying his resume and background before winning his seat in the midterms.
"If for some way when we go through Ethics and he has broken the law, then we will remove him," McCarthy told reporters Tuesday, Axios reported.
The speaker, though, added that he presently was "standing by" Santos.
"You know why I'm standing by him? Because his constituents voted for him," McCarthy said.
"I do not have the power, simply because I disagree with somebody on what they have said, that I will remove them from elected office."
Federal, state, and local investigators also are investigating Santos for potential law-breaking.
McCarthy last week said Santos would be seated on committees. The freshman lawmaker was given a seat on the House Committee on Small Business, a committee spokesperson confirmed, and a seat on the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, per three House Steering Committee members, Axios reported.
The speaker, however, last week also said he "always" questioned Santos' resume.
"I always had a few questions about it," McCarthy told CNN.
In December, Santos admitted to "embellishing" his resume, including his education and work experience.
The openly gay congressman also has been allegedly tied to a Ponzi scheme and to the cousin of a Russian oligarch, and has been accused of having competed as a drag queen in Brazilian beauty pageants 15 years ago.
Republican leaders in New York's Nassau County, from where Santos hails, have called on the lawmaker to resign from Congress over his "deceit, lies and fabrication."
Former Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., wrote a New York Times opinion column in which he called on Santos to resign.
"As long as Mr. Santos remains in Congress, he is dead man walking and will be unable to get anything done for his constituents," King wrote. "For at least this one moment in his life, it is time for Mr. Santos to face reality, do the honorable thing, and resign the seat in Congress."
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