George Santo’s photo op adds to his onslaught of ridicule

Republican-elect Rep. George Santos faces another round of ridicule after he shared a leisurely snap on Twitter while ignoring his lying scandal.

Santos, who has admitted to several lies about his personal and professional life, shared a picture taken Wednesday during a tour of the US Merchant Marine Academy. He reiterated that he intends to ignore calls to resign ahead of next week’s House of Representatives meeting and said the “honor” of the visit inspired him to work with the Academy while serving in New York’s 3rd congressional district .

“It was an honor to tour the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point today,” Santos commented alongside a photo of himself at the academy. “In Congress, I look forward to working with them to take full advantage of this amazing resource we have in our own backyard in #NY03.”

The new congressman has admitted to lying, including falsely claiming to be Jewish, getting degrees from universities he didn’t attend and working for prominent financial firms that never hired him.

His Wednesday tweet, the first from his account since Christmas, went down badly with most. Many pointed out that Santos conspicuously avoids mentioning his ongoing scandal.

“Tweet through, brother,” writes Benjamin Dreyer tweeted in reply to Santos.

“You should resign, George Costanza.” tweeted Activist Charlotte Clymer referring to the His field Character who told many great stories.

“You wouldn’t know what honor is if it spits in your face,” said science writer Erin Biba tweeted.

“Are you going to start telling people you’re a sea captain now?” asked Attorney Mark Yzaguirre.

“Did you tell them about your Medal of Honor for throwing yourself on a grenade and saving your entire platoon?” Author and attorney Brian Cuban tweeted.

“Sir, do you remember when you, as a sea captain, saved your shipmates from a pirate attack?” tweeted political commentator and podcast host David Pakman. “You then lived in a whale’s belly for a month. That was really heroic.”

“Photoshopped? Or really? asked Inna Vernikov, member of the Republican City Council of New York.

“Stop embarrassing yourself and resign,” wrote screenwriter Gary Whitta tweeted.

“Step back and get help” tweeted Author Jill Hamilton. “You clearly have a problem.”

Adding to the ridicule, some experts say the lies told by Santos could leave him vulnerable to criminal prosecution, although little can be done to prevent him from taking office next week other than resigning.

Former US Attorney Barbara McQuade told MSNBC on Tuesday that Santos may be on the alert for wire fraud, saying he may be responsible for “a scheme or attempted fraud” during his successful congressional campaign.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly, a Republican, opened an investigation into Santos on Wednesday.

“The numerous fabrications and inconsistencies associated with Congressman-elect Santos are nothing short of astounding,” Donnelly said in a statement sent to news week. “No one is above the law and if a crime has been committed in this county we will prosecute.”

news week Santos has reached out for comment.