Tipsheet

The Strange Way Exiled George Santos Is Raking In Money

Former Republican New York Rep. George Santos continues to make headlines even after being expelled from Congress earlier this month. 

The exiled congressman may have lost a $174,000 federal income salary but gained a strange new way of bringing in the dough. 

Santos recently drew attention after charging $$500 per personalized message request on Cameo, with a recent video dedicated to congratulating a “furry.”

Cameo is a platform, according to the website, that allows users to pay a specific amount for celebrities or well-known figures signed up to the site to recite a crafted message written by the buyer.

In an interview with CBS News, Santos said that by the end of the week, he will have surpassed his previous hefty congressional salary.

“I can tell you that by the end of this week, that is actually factual. I will have made more money in seven days than I would’ve made in an entire year in Congress,” Santos told CBS NY.

He initially priced his cameos for $75 each. However, as his videos become famous online, he has increased the rate to $500. 

Cameo’s founder and CEO, Steven Galanis, told Semafor that Santos's messages are “going to be an absolute whale” for the platform. “Sarah Jessica Parker, Bon Jovi — he’s putting numbers up like that.”

The ex-congressman recently gathered millions of views on social media after posting a cameo congratulating someone for “coming out as a furry,” adding that it was “awesome” he could share his new persona as a “beva-puss.”

On December 1, Santos was expelled from Congress after a House Ethics Committee report found “substantial evidence” that he lied about almost every aspect of his personal life during his campaign.