About a week before the Christmas holiday, the New York Times ran a story on George Santos, the newly elected Congressman representing New York’s Third Congressional District. Santos beat Robert Zimmermanby nearly 10%. It’s not that surprising that the Times would run a story on a freshman Congressman, representing parts of Long Island.
What is surprising is what the Time’s reporting revealed – that the people who elected George Santos didn’t really know much about the real George Santos. Voters elected a persona that had been invented for public consumption: a person who had attended the prestigious Horace Mann school, graduated from Baruch College, worked at Citibank and JP Morgan, managed 80 million dollars in real estate holdings, and founded a nonprofit.
The truth came out – but only after Mr. Santos’ was elected to the House of Representatives.
Do Americans Expect Politicians to Tell the Truth?
Reactions to Santos’ falsehoods have been mixed. “Politicians lie. He may have gone a little overboard.”, said Don Beyer (D, Va.) Tom Suozzi, who Santos is replacing, expressed frustration he’s being replaced by a con-man.
David Brooks asked a wonderfully insightful question in his December 28, 2022 Opinion piece: “What would it be like to be so ashamed of your life that you felt compelled to invent a new one?”, he wrote. Clearly, Brooks has adopted an empathetic view of Santos’ behavior.
Brooks may be on to something. Reasons for lying include unhealthy defense mechanisms, needing to be liked, and the needs to be in control. Constant lying is associated with an array of negative health outcomes. If even half of this applies to George Santos, he was clearly in a bad place.
Even though much as been said about how Santos misreported himself to the people, Mr. Santos himself has said very little. Some of Santos’ allies jumped to his defense, calling the Times reporting a “smear campaign” suggesting that the story about Santos’ lies were, in effect, lies.
But it turns out the Times reporting was true. Eventually Santos appeared on Fox News and said “I embellished my resume”. He said very little beyond that and did his best to dodge reporters on the Hill who peppered him with questions throughout his first day.
If You Lie About One Thing, ….
Questions about Mr. Santos’ honesty are not limited to facts about his personal life and professional credentials. There are also some questions about how he managed his campaign finances and contributions.Campaign finance rules are complicated and I’m no expert but Democrats are calling for an investigation.
The campaign finance issues are detailed in an exposé by Grace Ashford and Dana Rubinstein. The journalists uncovered nearly $11,000 in payments made by the campaign for a home where Mr. Santos appears to have been living. Rules allow campaign funds to cover housing for staff, but not for candidates’ personal living expenses. Ashford and Rubinstein also found hundreds of expenses that came in just under the threshold ($200) for submitting receipts. Compared to other candidates, Santos grossly outspent his peers.
Maybe all of Santos’ expenses are perfectly legitimate. I’m in no position to make an assessment. But what I can tell you is this: if he was not truthful about his personal and professional background, I wonder what else he’s not inclined to be truthful about.
And therein lies the real question: can anyone take him at his word?
Should Santos Get to Serve?
As of January 2, 2023, all signs indicated that the misrepresentations Santos made won’t keep him from being sworn in. And, indeed, he was sworn in on January 7, 2023 – along with all the other Members.
Four days earlier, Santos issued a press release that said he was sworn in on January 3, 2023. Twitter users seized the opportunity to poke fun. But really, it’s not a laughing matter.
Now that the Speaker debacle is over, referrals to the Ethics Committee have been filed and someRepublicans are refusing to work with Santos. Federal investigators are looking into the matter. But none of this appears to phase Santos, who’s not inclined to step down. Maybe he knows that these kinds of investigations take some time or he’s thinking the feds are way too busy sorting through the January 6thCommittee documents.
In refusing to step down, Santos seems to not notice, or not care, how his dishonesty harms America’s institutions. Even before the Santos story broke, Americans were already losing faith in American government. A 2019 study by Pew Research Center found that 64% of adults say it is hard to tell what’s true when listening to elected officials.
Should Americans Expect Politicians to be Honest?
There was a time when American politicians were known for their honesty. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were widely acclaimed for their trustworthiness. It turns out that Washington’s “I cannot tell a lie” is a myth. But Washington’s virtues and good character are well substantiated.
Hundreds of years ago, it seems, American society extoled leaders who demonstrated good character. And they were smart to do so. Social progress depends on people’s faith in their leaders, and faith in one another, to do the right thing. When people are admittedly dishonest, society begins to expect behavior that is deceptive, misleading, counterfactual, and fallacious – all synonymous with lying.
While Santos is not the only politician whose honesty and moral character is in question, it seems voters have come to expect dishonesty. One man interviewed by CBS said: “I figure he got caught doin’ what a lot of other politicians are doing”.
This is dangerous terrain.
Honesty: It’s Not Just for Politicians
Santos’ misrepresentations exacerbate the ongoing erosion of social trust in government. When social trust is high, there is more societal cohesion, integration, and the stability. When its low, it becomes much less likely individuals voluntarily comply with laws. Experts warn that when social trust collapses, nations fail.
But dishonesty also erodes social trust among people in general. When social trust is low, people believe everyone acts in their own best interest – and there’s no commitment to the common good.
The importance of telling the truth cannot be understated. It has benefits at work and in our communities. It is the foundation of relationships, allows us to build integrity, and helps us give and get respect.
Who Tells the Truth?
Some people take pride in telling the truth and some communities prioritize truth-telling. In a 2008 speech, Michelle Obama used the phrase “my word is my bond” in to explain how she and Barak were raised. In her Southside Chicago community, telling the truth was important and valued. That’s how I was raised too.
Many of us understand the importance of “keeping our word” – at home, with friends, in the workplace, and in public. Parents endeavor to teach their children to tell truth – but it only works if they lead by example. Society publicly recognizes truthtellers with awards and there’s an entire ecosystem of nonprofit organizations that support truth-telling through whistleblowing.
But there’s no better examples of the centrality of truthtellers to American society than Robert Shetterly’s lifework – the American’s Who Tell the Truth (AWTT). For more than two decades, Shetterly has used his remarkable artistic talent to create unique portraits of courageous citizens. Each portrait skillfully captures the artist’s experience of the truthteller, resulting in vibrant and dynamic representations. The portraits invite us to explore our collective humanity by learning more about individuals who chose to tell the truth, even when it was difficult to do so.
Personally, I was moved and inspired by the select portraits I reviewed. It’s hard to pick a favorite – because there are so many different reasons to like each one: the beautiful artwork, the powerful quotes, and the moving personal stories. AWTT left me feeling hopeful that all is not lost in American society. It showed me that there are honorable people all across the nation who stand up and speak out about injustices – big and small.
Shetterly describes his work as “a lantern that throws its light forward and back”. He notes,“understanding the truth of the past’s struggles for justice is essential to seeing clearly the obstacles and possibilities in the future.”
Shetterly’s ability to capture the interplay of past/present/future doesn’t stop there. AWTT has crated educational programming that brings a curated selection of portraits to thousands of schools across the nation. The traveling exhibition has been in 38 states so far. During the school visits, Shetterly discusses the portraits, the person they represent, and his experience creating them. He then invites students to internalize their experience of the portraits and the discussion by considering ways they can become truthtellers.
Silence is Complicity
I believe truthtellers have protected and improved our society. Their behavior stands in stark contrast to Mr. Santos’.
I am grateful to Mr. Shetterly for the work he’s doing to center attention on telling the truth – and standing up for what’s right. I’m also grateful for his efforts to shape the next generation of Americans and encourage activism.
Hopefully one of those students can one day find his/her/their way to the halls of Congress.