Kevin McCarthy buried for selling 'another share' of his soul to protect George Santos

The editorial board of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch pounced on newly-elected House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) for acknowledging the problems of Rep. George Santos (R-NY) when it comes to the lies the freshman lawmaker told to get elected -- and then refusing to do anything about it.

Despite the controversial Santos facing multiple investigations from the FEC and the House Ethics Committee and more questions being raised about financial improprieties, McCarthy brushed off the press on Thursday when he said of the New York Republican, "The voters have elected George Santos. He is seated," before adding, "The voters elected him to serve,” and that he "has to answer to the voters, and the voters can make another decision in two years.“

According to the Post-Dispatch editors, those comments were just another example of McCarthy's desperation to be speaker with such a small margin in the House.

As the editors note, this is not the first time the House GOP leader has looked the other way instead of doing the right thing.

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"McCarthy has proven time and again that concepts like ethics, principles and personal responsibility — longtime pillars of the Republican platform — mean nothing. Which is precisely why Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz, McCarthy’s nemesis in last week’s battle over the speakership, suggested McCarthy had sold shares of his soul in his quest for power," they wrote before reminding readers that "Santos’ case is perplexing because it is such an exceedingly blatant example of someone who fabricated virtually every important aspect of his resume in order to get elected on Nov. 8."

Pointing out that Nassau County Republican Party chairman Joseph G. Cairo Jr. said of Santos, “He’s disgraced the House of Representatives, and we do not consider him one of our congresspeople," the editors said McCarthy should do the same instead of telling voters to wait two years to vote him out.

"Used-car salesmen have come up with better excuses to get out of honoring a warranty after lying about the car’s mileage, engine damage, collision history and the fact that it was stolen and the title was forged. Just wait a few years until the car wears out, then buy a new one," they wrote before adding, "McCarthy needs every Republican vote he can muster. He can’t afford to lose Santos’ vote. And if he allowed Long Island voters to decide for themselves in a new election after they’ve been hoodwinked, the chances of them voting for another Republican would be slim to none. So it appears that another share of McCarthy’s soul has gone to the highest bidder."

You can read the whole piece here.