George Santos: ‘You sit in a room with a lot of Jews, you’re f—ed’
![George Santos speaks to members of the press following charges from the Justice Department.](https://forward.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/GettyImages-1488932731-2400x1350.jpg)
George Santos speaks to members of the press following charges from the Justice Department.
In new audio, Rep. George Santos (R-NY) can be heard imitating Jewish constituents and kvetching about how, when you are in a room with them, “you’re f—ed.”
Director Blake Zeff, who said he spent months speaking to Santos for a potential documentary, posted what he called the congressman’s “Jewish impression” to Twitter, via Ari Melber’s MSNBC show The Beat. The context, Zeff said, was Santos speaking about his district.
“You sit in a room with a lot of Jews, you’re f—ed,” said the congressman, who this week pleaded not guilty to a 13-count indictment.
“It’s funny when the -isms start coming out, right? ‘Oh he’s such a mensch, he’s such a mensch,’” Santos said, affecting a Yiddish accent. “Then they go onto the next thing, oh he’s such a [unintelligible, a possible corruption of Yiddish.]”
Talking about his district, Santos said: “You sit in a room with a lot of Jews, you’re fucked!”
Then he assumed a fake Yiddish accent, to say: “Oh he’s such a mensch. He’s such a mensch.” Listen here? https://t.co/ybrMipN8sA
Santos insists he has Jewish heritage, despite a Forward genealogy report that found evidence the grandparents he claimed were Jewish refugees from Belgium and Ukraine, were born in Brazil. After multiple exposés about his many lies, Santos has had difficulty winning over Jewish constituents, even in his own party.
Following the news of his indictments, Bruce Blakeman, Nassau County’s executive, and a Republican, told the Forward Santos “has been thoroughly untruthful about his biography and has fabricated stories that are blatantly untrue.”
“He needs to go,” Blakeman added.
Or, as a room with Jews might say, “aroiys mit im!”
A message from our editor-in-chief Jodi Rudoren
![](https://forward.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Jodi-Headshot.jpg)
We're building on 127 years of independent journalism to help you develop deeper connections to what it means to be Jewish today.
With so much at stake for the Jewish people right now — war, rising antisemitism, a high-stakes U.S. presidential election — American Jews depend on the Forward's perspective, integrity and courage.
— Jodi Rudoren, Editor-in-Chief