In a YouTube video, George Santos addresses “you messy bitches” to tell the world that “Kitara Ravache is coming out of the closet after 18 years”, adding that his Cameo appearances will be “very limited” and for a “good cause”.
The personalized videos that he creates on Cameo — a digital platform that lets fans pay celebrities to record short, customized videos — will cost $350 each, according to the new account’s page. Santos started using Cameo just days after he was ousted from Congress; in December, he told Semafor that the money he made on the platform in just 48 hours exceeded the $170,000 he would have made serving in Congress for the entire year. He was flush with money and bragging, but that may no longer be the case.
Santos claims that 20% of the proceeds from his Kitara videos will go to two nonprofits: International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, which aims to build support for Israel by fostering connections between Jews and Christians; and the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which supports first responders, military service members, veterans and, according to its website, helps “America to Never Forget September 11, 2001.”
Knowing the level of honesty and integrity that we have come to associate with the flagrantly lying ousted congressman who invented his entire public biography seemingly from scratch, we can easily guess what the “good cause” will be. Few people believe in it. Instead, social media users suggest that it will be “tunnels to Towers and directly to his pockets.”
Already both nonprofit organizations have said in emails that they have not engaged with Santos or his team and that they learned about potential donations only when Santos tweeted it Monday.
“This is what happens when you’re unemployed, with lots of time on his hands. He was bragging about the thousands he was making on Cameo a few months ago…pivoting to drag means that has dried up..” said one user.
Santos hasn’t always been eager to admit to being Kitara Ravache. In January 2023, a Brazilian drag queen, Eula Rochard, shared a photo on social media of herself and a drag performer, whom she referred to by the stage name Kitara Rivache, and said the performer was in fact Santos.
At the time, Santos, who has lived in Brazil throughout parts of his life, denied performing in drag and called the allegations that he was a former drag queen “categorically false.” In the following days, he seemed to imply that he had performed in drag in the past, telling reporters: “I was young and I had fun at a festival. Sue me for having a life.”
Now he proudly boasts about Kitara Ravache and after failing at the role of lawmaker and politician, is looking to monetize another one of his invented personalities.
