3 months instead of 7 years in prison George Santos was pardoned by Trump - now he wants to name his children after him
After just under three months in prison, George Santos is free again: President Donald Trump has pardoned the convicted ex-congressman. Now Santos talks about his time in prison - and his plans for the future.
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- George Santos has been released after almost three months in prison thanks to a pardon from US President Donald Trump.
- This is despite the fact that he should have spent just over seven years behind bars.
- Shortly after his release, he spoke to several media outlets about his poor prison conditions and how his life should now continue.
Former Republican politician George Santos is free again after just under three months in prison. The 37-year-old should actually have spent 87 months in prison, but US President Donald Trump pardoned him at the end of last week.
Trump had previously stated in his online service Truth Social: "George Santos was something of a 'rogue', but there are many rogues in our country who are not forced to spend seven years in prison."
Santos had spent a long time in solitary confinement and had "by all accounts been terribly mistreated". He had "signed a mitigation of sentence that releases George Santos from prison immediately". At the end, Trump added: "Good luck, George - I wish you a great life!"
Santos was convicted of fraud, identity theft and making false statements about his finances in April this year. He pleaded guilty.
Among other things, the 37-year-old falsified a large part of the CV with which he presented himself to voters in 2022. In the course of the public furor surrounding him, more and more lies and outlandish episodes came to light.
Because of the lies and bizarre appearances, Santos was kicked out of the US House of Representatives at the beginning of December 2023, where he had sat in Congress for around a year as a member of a New York district and presented himself as a supporter of Donald Trump.
Botox treatments again at last
Barely out of prison, Santos has already spoken to several media outlets about his time in custody, tellingNew York Magazinethat he was placed in protective custody about a month after his conviction.
He was only allowed to talk on the phone for 15 minutes every 30 days and was no longer allowed to send emails. He said he had suicidal thoughts and was denied medication for ADHD: Instead, he was prescribed antidepressants, he said.
Not everyone agrees with the earlier release. In an interview with CNN presenter Dana Bash, Santos was unimpressed by his critics.
"Forgive me if I don't pay too much attention to the outrage of my critics," he said. He also spoke to Rachel Campos-Duffy on the show "Fox & Friends Weekend" about the advantages of his new life in freedom - for example, that he can now treat himself to Botox treatments again.
In the CNN program, he also strongly criticized the prison warden, whom he calls "Warden Kelly". He accused her of being "a vindictive warden" who "put him in solitary confinement after 41 days for no good reason." In an interview with Fox News, he added: "She's a horrible person running a horrible facility."
Help from Marjorie Taylor Greene
Marjorie Taylor Greene, the congresswoman from Georgia and close ally of Trump, played a decisive role in his release, as Santos told New York Magazine. Her office had been in close contact with his husband Matt Gerard and his lawyer to campaign for his release.
Matt Gerard said: "She kept writing to me: 'Listen, Matt, I'm doing everything I can. I'll never get tired of fighting for George'". Her chief of staff also kept in touch with his lawyer.
When Santos was finally allowed to leave prison, Gerard said to him: "Call Marjorie now." The second call then came from the president himself. "I am the first person in my family to ever receive a call from the president of the United States," Santos said.
He went on to tell the magazine that his future children will be named after those who helped him get out of prison. "So I'll probably have to do like Neil Tim or something and double the names because I don't want to have 12 or 15 kids," joked Santos.
Names planned include Donald - after the president - Marjorie (Taylor Greene), Lauren (Boebert) and Tim (Burchett), inspired by the Republican politicians who have been particularly active in campaigning for his release.
Santos now wants to take part in "Dancing with the Stars"
In his three months in prison, Santos has lost over 13 kilograms. Working in the prison kitchen made him lose his appetite.
"I felt like I was in a Mexican prison, because it was just beef tacos, beef taco salad, chicken tacos, chicken taco salad, chicken fajitas, beef fajitas," he tells the magazine.
Preparing huge meals with inferior ingredients - canned tomatoes were considered salsa - didn't make the situation any better. The milk cartons smelled of onions and he eventually gave up breakfast altogether.
Next, Santos wants to try to sell his memoirs. They are based on hundreds of pages of notes he made during his imprisonment. He wants to write a book about his experiences.
Santos currently earns his money with short video messages on the Cameo platform to pay his legal fees. He sells personalized clips on Cameo for around 300 dollars each. The videos serve as greeting messages that fans can buy from celebrities and give as gifts, for example.
He also wants to take part in "Dancing with the Stars". "Sean Spicer had his fun, and Anna Delvey did it with an ankle bracelet," he says. "Why can't I do the same?"
While he waits for his invitation, he plans to leave New York and found a non-profit organization that helps young people stay out of prison.
