Those who serve in elected office should be held to the highest possible ethical standard. Last week, I voted to expel George Santos from Congress after a damning Ethics report proved he belonged in prison, not Congress.
Con men, crooks, and unethical politicians who are expelled from Congress shouldn’t be able to access retirement support paid for with tax dollars. That’s why, today, I introduced bipartisan legislation to ensure that any Member of Congress expelled from the House of Representatives or Senate cannot collect a taxpayer-funded pension or retirement plan based on their Congressional service.
Thankfully, George Santos won’t be eligible to receive a pension because he didn’t hit the minimum term of service, but this episode exposed a major flaw that needs to be fixed: those who are unfit to serve in Congress are unfit to receive a pension. With the potential that the Senate could soon expel Robert Menendez, this legislation is a common-sense approach to ensure taxpayers aren’t on the hook for the pensions of crooks and con artists.
Bottom line: If you’re unfit to serve, you’re unfit to receive a pension funded by the taxpayer.