George Santos, the New York congressman expelled from the U.S. House in 2023 and later imprisoned for fraud, says his political career is over. In his first interview since his release — with Lesley Stahl on 60 Minutes, which aired October 12 — Santos said he is seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump.
Asked how he would address the president, Santos replied, 'Daddy Trump, I have been a good boy.' He pointed to a record he described as 100 per cent supportive of Trump, including votes and media appearances defending him.
Santos also addressed the crimes that sent him to prison, telling Stahl that essentially everything he had read about himself was true. He had pleaded guilty in 2024 to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, including schemes involving campaign donors.
These days, he says, his income comes from personalized video messages on Cameo, social media platforms including TikTok and X, and subscription content — a reported haul in the hundreds of thousands of dollars that has made him one of the more unlikely earners of the creator economy.
Whether a pardon follows is now a Washington question. For Santos, the interview was a carefully staged reintroduction: contrite about the fraud, unapologetic about the loyalty he hopes will be repaid.
