Editor’s note: George Santos was scheduled to be sworn into Congress on Tuesday, but that ceremony was delayed until Saturday because until then, Rep. Kevin McCarthy could not get the required 218 votes needed to become the new speaker of the House, putting all House action at a standstill.

There is more than meets the eye to the hand-wringing about the inability to prevent serial liar George Santos of New York from being seated as a member of the 118th Congress on Tuesday. Arguably, the roots go back 100 years, to Jim Crow, ironically.