Tag: George Santos

Next September, George Santos will stand trial for nearly two dozen federal crimes prosecutors have accused him of committing; if convicted, he faces more than 20 years in prison. That’s the sort of prospect that would keep most people up at night but it seems, at the moment, the recently expelled representative is living his best life.

Less than two weeks after being expelled from Congress, the former New York representative is now making money hand over fist recording personalized videos on Cameo, for which he is now charging an astonishing $500 a pop, a 566.67% increase from his original asking price of $75. Last week, Semafor reported that he was on track to make more money in a few days than his annual congressional salary of $174,000. Now it appears the demand for Santos content is so great that he will make many, many multiples of that. Over the weekend, he reportedly told people at a party on the Upper East Side that he had 140 orders on Friday at $599-a-piece, which translates to $83,860 a day. (It’s not clear when or why Santos cut his rate from $599 to $500 but perhaps he was overcome by the Christmas spirit.)

While Santos was spotted out with friends—including repsresentatives Lauren Boebert and Byron Donalds—at the Beach Café on Saturday night, he was apparently so busy churning out videos that he declined other social events. “I’d been working,” he told Page Six, explaining why he did not attend a New York Young Republican Club event earlier in the evening. “I electively chose not to go [to the gala] this year…I need to make a living because I have a family to support and feed.” (He also, obviously, has legal fees to pay. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.) In one of his recently recorded videos, he tells the recipient, “Chris, you sick psycho, you want me to yell at you? Are you out of your mind?”

While a source claimed to Page Six that Santos “bought pizza for everyone in the joint” on Saturday, the ex-lawmaker, who may or may not have restitution to pay in the future, denied doing so, saying: “I did not buy pizza for 35 people…it’s not true, it’s a lie. I ordered two $20 pies…for me and my friends.”

George Santos does not have a lot going for him at the moment, mostly on account of (1) losing his job in Congress last week and (2) the nearly two dozen felonies he was charged with (and pleaded not guilty to) early this year, which he is scheduled to stand trial for next September. He does have one bright spot in his life, though, and that’s the fact that he’s apparently making an absolutely absurd amount of money on Cameo, the platform of choice for reality TV stars, mid-tier actors, disgraced politicians, and Rudy Giuliani.

Yes, Semafor reports that Santos is churning out so many videos for paying customers that he had to buy a stand to prop up his phone because “his hand is getting tired.” As of Monday, the former congressman was charging $200 a pop, but he has since doubled his rate to $400. As of Tuesday, he’d shot 150 videos and told Semafor he planned to “crush another 60–70 tonight.” According to the outlet, screenshots show—and the CEO of Cameo confirmed—that Santos will make more money in his first few days on Cameo than his annual congressional salary of $174,000.

Cameo cofounder Steven Galanis told Semafor that Santos “is going to be an absolute whale,” and claimed the ex-representative is “putting numbers up” on par with Sarah Jessica Parker (who’s previously used it to raise money for the New York City Ballet) and Bon Jovi (who no longer has an account on the site, though a Bon Jovi impersonator does.)

In one video Santos recorded, he tells “Bobby from New Jersey,” who turned out to be indicted senator Bob Menendez, to “stay strong,” a request that came from Senator John Fetterman:

In another, he covers a Taylor Swift favorite:

Are you stumped about what to give your loved ones this holiday season? Gift shopping for the guy or gal who has everything? Looking for some dirt on your representative in Congress? George Santos has got you covered!

The former congressman, who was unceremoniously booted from the House on Friday, is filling his early day of unemployment hawking videos on Cameo for $200 a pop. Describing himself as a “Former congressional ‘Icon’,” Santos lists “holiday,” “birthday,” “gossip,” “pep talk,” “roast,” “advice,” or “other” on the menu of options customers can choose from. In one video, he tells someone named “Megan,” who is getting “some tough heat in the press,” to keep her head high and not let the haters get her down, noting that he speaks from experience. (“They can boot me out of Congress, but they can’t take away my good humor or my larger-than-life personality, nor my good faith, and the absolute pride I have for everything I’ve done,” Santos says.) In another, he opens a video to a woman named “Katie,” who seemingly complimented his line-free face, by saying, “Hi Katie, thank you for the love, thank you for the kindness—you know, Botox keeps you young, fillers keep you plump.”

It’s unclear if the “gossip” Santos is offering would involve stories about his former colleagues, but there’s definitely a nonzero chance it does.

Because Santos served less than five years in Congress before he was expelled, he is not eligible to receive a pension. So these videos are obviously necessary to help pay the bills until he figures out his next act (which we assume he will soon announce involves curing cancer). In addition, shortly before lawmakers gave him the heave-ho, Santos told reporters that he will write a book and “maybe in the future” consider going on “Dancing with the Stars.”

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We haven’t seen the last of George Santos, it seems. The alleged thief and well-documented mythomaniac was expelled from Congress Friday, and a barn-burning cold open on last night’s Saturday Night Live seemed to shut the door on the 35-year-old Republican from New York. All that seemed left was his trial on 23 federal counts of theft of public funds, wire fraud, money laundering, and more—that is, until veteran satirist Frank Rich stepped into the picture.

Rich, who’s served as executive producer for funhouse-mirror HBO smashes such as Succession, will oversee a dramatic adaptation of The Fabulist, journalist Mark Chiusano’s new book on the improbable (or not?!?) rise of the ousted politician—who, arguably, might have been too over-the-top were he a character on one of Rich’s other shows, Veep.

The as-yet-unnamed Santos movie will also be an HBO joint, Deadline reports, as its HBO Films bought the option for Chiusano’s book. (Subtitled The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos, The Fabulist was released on November 28, four days before 311 members of Congress voted to show Santos the door.) Another HBO standby, Mike Makowsky (Bad Education) will pen the “forensic and darkly comic” screenplay and co-executive produce; Chiusano will act as consulting producer.

Casting has yet to be announced for the film, which Deadline characterizes as currently “in development.” Slews of social media users are already proposing Harvey Guillén (What We Do In The Shadows) for the lead, with Schitt’s Creek co-creator Dan Levy also in the suggestion box. 

Presumably, SNL’s Bowen Yang is also in the conversation, but it’s unclear if he’d be interested: speaking with Seth Meyers in early 2023 about his ongoing role on the show as Santos, even Yang questioned his own casting. “He has glasses, and we both have a gross nasally voice. So, like, maybe I’m the guy?”

“You can’t get a hold on him as a person,” Yang said. “You’re like, ‘Who is this guy? … what is this guy’s deal?’”