In a stunning exercise of executive clemency that immediately reignited the national debate over the use of presidential power, President Donald Trump on Friday ordered the commutation of the prison sentence for disgraced former U.S. Representative George Santos.
Santos, a New York Republican who was expelled from Congress in 2023 for a pattern of breathtaking fraud and fabrication, was serving a sentence of more than seven years. He had been behind bars for less than three months when the President’s order was announced.
In a late-day post on his social media platform, President Trump declared the commutation, stating that Santos had been “horribly mistreated” in prison and that his sentence was disproportionate.
“George Santos was somewhat of a ‘rogue,’ but there are many rogues throughout our Country that aren’t forced to serve seven years in prison,” the President wrote. “Therefore, I just signed a Commutation, releasing George Santos from prison, IMMEDIATELY.”
Santos was released from the Federal Correctional Institution in Fairton, New Jersey, late Friday evening, according to his legal team.
From Capitol Hill to Clemency
The former lawmaker’s spectacular fall from grace began almost immediately after his 2022 election victory, as reports revealed he had fabricated large swaths of his personal and professional biography—from his education and employment history to claims about his family fleeing the Holocaust.
The scandal culminated in a conviction after he pleaded guilty to federal charges, including wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Prosecutors successfully argued that Santos had systematically deceived donors, misused campaign funds, and stolen the identities of multiple individuals to facilitate his criminal schemes.
At his sentencing in April, the judge had imposed a tough 87-month term, noting Santos’s consistent lack of genuine remorse.
The commutation follows a handwritten letter Santos reportedly sent to the President this week, in which he appealed to Trump’s “sense of justice and humanity” and reaffirmed his loyalty to the “America First” agenda.
Outcry on Both Sides
The clemency decision drew immediate and sharp criticism from across the political spectrum, with many viewing it as a clear reward for political fealty rather than a principled correction of judicial error.
Democrats decried the move as further evidence of an executive branch unmoored from the rule of law. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) referred to Santos as a “serial fraudster” whose crimes warranted the punishment.
Even some Republicans who had supported Santos’s expulsion from Congress voiced their disapproval. Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger called the commutation “a feature of corruption,” warning that it sends a message that “if you like me you can get away with anything.”
Conversely, Republican allies of Santos, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had publicly campaigned for his release, hailed the President’s action, claiming the former lawmaker had been “unfairly treated” and subjected to judicial overreach.
While a commutation shortens the prison sentence, it does not wipe away the underlying conviction, meaning Santos remains a convicted felon, obligated to pay the restitution ordered in his case. However, the order is seen as a potent demonstration of presidential authority and the administration’s continued use of clemency to benefit political allies, regardless of the severity or non-political nature of their federal crimes.