Vote to expel George Santos exposes GOP tensions

The 311-114 vote to expel George Santos from the House on Friday exposed tensions between GOP members, who were almost evenly split in their votes.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) came out at the last minute against expelling Santos, who faces allegations he lied about his resume and wealth during the campaign in 2020 and two indictments that he used donors' credit cards to make donations to his campaign without permission and spent $4,000 in campaign funds on luxury items.

Despite Johnson being against the expulsion -- the first ever that didn't involve a criminal conviction or fighting for the Confederacy -- he urged his GOP colleagues to vote their consciences.

The fact that members of the same party could have such radically different consciences explains why it is far more difficult for the GOP to reach consensus than it is for Democrats.

Although Santos wasn't convicted of a crime before his expulsion, it seems that many Republicans could see the handwriting on the wall.

A bipartisan Ethics Committee report provided overwhelming information suggesting that Santos was guilty of some of the charges against him.