George Santos Gives Grifter Sass To Ziwe, Social Media Explodes

Source: @ziwef / Instagram

Expelled Republican congressman George Santos sat down for an outlandish interview with Ziwe that had social media in shambles. The controversial former Republican George Santos sat down for a highly anticipated interview with the comedian and celebrity interviewer Ziwe, who released it in full on Monday morning (December 18) on her YouTube channel. The “ZNN” (for Ziwe News Network) interview ran for twenty minutes. It contained several moments that left viewers with a mixture of emotions ranging from stunned to appalled at Santos’ shamelessness.

Santos didn’t hold back in response to one of Ziwe’s questions. “What can we do to get you to go away?”, she asked. “Stop inviting me to your gigs,” he retorted. “The lesson is to stop inviting you places,” Ziwe said in response. “But you can’t,” Santos replied. “Because people want the content.” Other highlights from the interview included an exchange where Ziwe asked Santos his opinions on LGBTQ icons such as Marsha P. Johnson (as he compared himself to civil rights icon Rosa Parks in the past) – which took a turn as Santos was asked about the late author James Baldwin. “Who the hell is James Baldwin?”,  he replied.

Many who watched the interview noted that Santos was careful to answer anything related to his current status of negotiating a plea deal with the Department of Justice over charges that he defrauded campaign donors. He was the sixth congressperson ever expelled in November after the House Ethics Committee alleged that he spent donations on items from Hermès, Ferragamo, and also on cosmetic procedures and OnlyFans. At one point before the interview took place, Santos was overheard asking the comedian to “be mindful with the DOJ stuff.”

Others felt that Ziwe did wrong in giving Santos more coverage with the interview. Santos had been approached by Ziwe on X, formerly known as Twitter the day after his expulsion from the House of Representatives. She asked if he’d be interested in a “pay-per-view” interview. He accepted, and though he wasn’t paid for the interview it was noted on the video that he asked to be paid three times. Currently, Santos is a top draw on Cameo, the website that offers people customized celebrity videos for a price.

We’ve assembled some of the more notable reactions from social media, primarily X  for you to check out below.

1. Balkanka

This X user utilized a video of Azealia Banks and a unique display of smudging with their post.

2. Spencer Althouse

The deputy editor at Buzzfeed applauded Ziwe’s skillful baiting of Santos in one segment of the interview.

3. Whitley

This X user named Whitley had a succinct remedy to get people to ignore Santos. 

4. Joey Hannum

The comm strategist wrote, “What excites you most about going to prison… Do you like the color orange?” give Ziwe a Pulitzer I’m so serious.”

5. Sana Saeed

The media critic took a different perspective on “that’ moment of the interview.

6. Gemini's Groove

7. Ola Ojewumi

The writer raised a valid point about Ziwe not asking Santos key questions about previous lies he has told in the past, especially one where he claimed to be Black.

8. Armand Domalewski

9. Tami Sawyer

The Democratic politician expressed her dismay at Santos getting such a platform in light of his criminal misdeeds.