Republican George Santos hasn’t had it easy since being ousted from Congress by the GOP-led House.
A week after being shown the door, Santos set up a Cameo account where fans can pay to have the former lawmaker send them a short video.
Though he claimed, he’s “made more money in seven days than he did in Congress for a year,” according to late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, not all of that money has come from enthusiastic supporters.
“Part of that money came from me,” Kimmel told his audience on Monday’s episode, according to the New York Post.
Kimmel, it seems, has been sending Santos “a number of different ridiculous requests” in a bid to find out, “Will Santos Say It?”
(Video: YouTube)
The answer is yes, at “400 bucks a pop,” according to Kimmel, Santos will say a whole bunch of things.
Kimmel aired some of Santos’s Cameo responses on Thursday, and, in response, Santos demanded “$20,000 from me to be paid a commercial rate,” the ABC host told his audience.
An attorney for Santos fired off a “cease and desist” letter “to Kimmel, ABC and executive producer of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ Doug Deluca,” The Post reports.
“We are writing to congratulate you — your ‘dream’ of being sued by Mr. Santos may indeed come true,” attorney Andrew Mancilla wrote in the Dec. 12 letter.
“While your comedic efforts are much appreciated,” Mancilla said, “you should have obtained Mr. Santos’ consent, as he is not camera shy, nor is he blind to the comedic irony of suing you for fraud.”
“He should be thanking me for buying these videos,” Kimmel stated on his show.
(Video: YouTube)
But according to Mancilla, Santos may get the last laugh over the “prank.”
“Such ‘pranks’ are frequently known by a different name in the legal community: fraud,” the lawyer wrote.
He accused Kimmel of being a “sneaky little trickster” who may have gotten “some hearty laughs” and a boost in his ratings, but alleged that his actions “constitute fraudulent inducement, breach of contract and unjust enrichment as well as violations of New York State’s Civil Rights Law.”
“You also breached Cameo’s Terms of Service, which we understand they already contacted you about,” Mancilla told Kimmel and his crew. “We trust you will take this letter as seriously as Mr. Santos takes his Cameo commitments. Let’s resolve this. Call us.”
Sadly for Santos, it isn’t the only time his Cameo videos have been the butt of a few jokes.
As BizPac Review reported, earlier this month, Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) tricked Santos into trolling fellow Democrat Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, who is currently fighting claims that he and his wife were bribed by Egypt.
Fetterman paid Santos $343 for a Cameo video to offer “Bobby from Jersey” some words of encouragement, and Santos eagerly complied.
“I thought my ethically-challenged colleague @BobMenendezNJ could use some encouragement given his substantial legal problems,” Fetterman posted on X, along with Santos’s Cameo video. “So, I approached a seasoned expert on the matter to give ‘Bobby from Jersey’ some advice.”
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Melissa Fine is the former executive editor of Casino Player, Strictly Slots, and Poker
Digest magazines. She is a UCLA graduate, news junkie, and dedicated Stargate SG-
1 fan. Melissa currently lives with her dog and two cats in a tiny town in the Sierra
Nevada foothills.
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