WASHINGTON — Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., said in an interview on Thursday that Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., consoled him after his tense exchange this week with Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, but Sinema's office says she never spoke to Santos.
Santos told Newsmax Thursday evening that after Romney lashed out at him ahead of Tuesday's State of the Union address, Sinema told the congressman to “hang in there, buddy” as she was walking by. He added that she "was very polite, very kindhearted," unlike Romney, who he claims has "always had prejudice towards minorities."
"She’s a good person, unlike Mr. Romney, who thinks he’s above it all. And his whole mighty white horse trying to talk to us down on morality," Santos said.
But that never happened, Sinema's spokesperson Hannah Hurley, told NBC News, calling Santos' comment "a lie." The two lawmakers never spoke, Hurley said, and Sinema was not aware of the exchange between Santos and Romney until the GOP senator filled her in afterward.
Santos' office declined to comment for this article.
During the same interview with Newsmax, Santos claimed he never lied about his work experience. "I want to set the record clear about my work experience. I never lied." Santos said. “To say that I deceived and there was a campaign of deceit and deception, is just not fair. That’s just the political spin that the Nassau County GOP wants to create on this narrative."
Santos, however, had previously admitted to lying about numerous parts of his background. He is the subject of federal, state, local and international investigations.
When asked by the Newsmax host whether he ever survived a brain tumor, Santos said, "I had my own personal medical issues in the past and I don’t feel I need to go into details. But yes, I did have an acute tumor of..." The congressman had previously claimed in 2020 that he had battled a brain tumor a couple of years earlier.
Ahead of President Joe Biden's State of the Union address on Tuesday, Romney approached Santos while the congressman stood in the aisle of the House chamber and they had what appeared to be a tense exchange. Afterward, Romney said, "He’s a sick puppy. He shouldn’t have been there,” he said of Santos standing in the aisle.
“Given the fact that he’s under ethics investigation, he should be sitting in the back row and being quiet instead of parading in front of the president,” he added.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said last month that Santos would be removed from office if the Ethics Committee found he broke the law after he admitted having fabricated parts of his background. He told reporters on Tuesday that while there have been complaints about Santos, the Ethics Committee has not formally opened an investigation.
Santos said last month he would temporarily recuse himself from his committee assignments amid the investigations into his finances and other issues.
