George Santos, the infamous former New York congressman who now owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in restitution and other obligations, recently bragged on social media about turning down a generous compensation offer from Delta Air Lines on an oversold flight.
George Santos Turns Down $900 From Delta On Oversold Flight, Then Complains About It
On December 6, 2025, Santos was flying the Delta Shuttle from Washington National (DCA) to New York when the flight went out oversold. Delta, which is known for aggressively seeking volunteers before it ever involuntarily removes anyone from a plane, offered four passengers $900 each in gift cards to take a later flight. Santos took to X to describe what happened:
He portrays this as a commentary on how flush everyone must be that they can walk away from $900 near Christmas. What he leaves out is that he also walked away from $900 near Christmas. For a man who has admitted to fraud, seen his life implode, and now faces a mountain of financial obligations, that is an odd hill to die on…
Santos later clarified that he did not take the money because he was on a tight schedule, while also casually mentioning that he has taken bigger offers in the past:
$1600 per person to get off a Las Vegas flight is a solid deal. $900 to step off a short shuttle flight between Washington and New York is also a solid deal. Most of us who watch our finances closely would at least think about it, especially if our schedule had any flexibility at all.
Delta’s Offer And Santos’ Priorities
Delta almost never needs to involuntarily bump anyone these days. The airline uses gift cards, not restrictive travel vouchers, and keeps raising the offer until enough volunteers step forward. In this case, $900 per person was the number that appeared on Santos’ screen, a number high enough that he decided to share it with the world.
Keep in mind who we are talking about. As View From The Wing points out, this is a man who claimed a huge salary and millions in dividends from a company that did not appear to exist in any meaningful way, who allegedly used campaign funds on personal expenses (I won’t go into details, but think escorts and botox…), and who has now pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft (commuted by Presdient Trump). He has a limited path back to a conventional career, which is why he has turned to monetizing his notoriety through things like Cameo and appearances on podcasts.
Against that backdrop, turning down $900 and then using the episode as content feels very on brand. Santos is effectively telling us that he values staying on that particular shuttle flight, and perhaps keeping his social plans, more than he values an extra $900 toward his obligations. That is his right, of course, but it just shows why he is where he is…
Santos On Trains, Planes, And Penn Station
One interesting aside in this saga is Santos’ reaction to the suggestion that he could take Amtrak instead of flying between New York and Washington. He’s not a fan of New York Penn Station:
There is plenty to criticize about the current state of Penn Station, but for many travelers, especially those who live or work near Midtown, the train remains a far more reliable option than shuttling back and forth to LaGuardia, Newark, or Kennedy. But the Monyuhan Hall is very nice and I find traveling on Amrak very nice…
> Read More: Amtrak Acela First Class New York – Washington Review
CONCLUSION
Delta offered four passengers $900 each to give up their seats on an oversold Washington to New York shuttle flight. George Santos declined, then went online to complain that others did the same. For someone who owes large sums of money, it is a curious choice, and it says more about Santos’ priorities than it does about the supposed prosperity of his fellow travelers.
If you are offered $900 for a short flight, you should run the numbers before automatically turning it down. For Santos, the math appears to be that attention on social media is more valuable than money in hand (and sadly, that may be a winning formula). For many of us, especially those who do not have a side business monetizing notoriety, the calculation might come out very differently.
At least he did not have a meltdown this time on Delta…
> Read More: Disgraced Former Congressman George Santos’ Meltdown Over Migrant Delta Air Lines Flights
image: @georgesantos / X (MTG whispering to Santos on the House Floor)
Never heard of this George Santos fella, but he does resemble the infamous Kitara Ravache. Slay queen!
Penn Station is great these days. What is he talking about? Tons of restaurants and coffee shops, a fresh facelift. Is he going to rip on LGA next?
For real. The New York Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station is glorious. I’d choo-choo-choose it. LGA B & C, EWR A, are each spectacular, too. Anyone who says otherwise clearly hasn’t been by for a while.
When George Santos says anything I would not believe it. They only kept him around for a majority vote. And yeah, it was embarrassing. I suspect the veteran that had his ill dog’s fundraising used to support a lifestyle of debauchery might have something to say about the trump pardon.
I wish shame and dishonor meant something, but, these days, we’re more likely to literally do another war of choice in Venezuela (Iraq 2.0), than we are to see some-Republicans do the right thing for their constituents or the country anytime soon. Remember when a cohort of them literally went to Moscow over 4th of July… traitors.