House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Thursday that Rep. Jim Jordan “had a duty” to protect wrestlers at Ohio State University in the wake of allegations that he turned a blind eye to sexual abuse by a team doctor, calling the entire situation “heartbreaking.”
Pelosi told reporters that Jordan “should have known” about the situation given his own “standard” of questioning political opponents as a member of the House Judiciary Committee.
“It’s heartbreaking. It’s devastating for so many young people who have suffered for years with the emotional pain of all of this. It’s very sad,” Pelosi said during her weekly press conference, thanking the accusers for coming forward with their allegations of abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss.
“Jim Jordan had a duty to protect them. They say he failed … Rather than deny and dismiss them, he should fully cooperate with the investigation,” Pelosi said.
“He is a person that has always said … ‘So-and-so should have known this. So-and-so should have known that,'” Pelosi said. “Well many people say that he did know and by his own standard, he should have known.”
A spokesman for the Ohio Republican maintains that Jordan’s office is cooperating with the ongoing investigation by Ohio State and are in the process of scheduling an interview.
Pelosi also said that Congress could get involved at some stage, but that the school’s investigation takes priority at the moment. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Wednesday that there should not be congressional involvement because the allegations took place prior to Jordan’s time in Congress.
“At some point,” Pelosi said of congressional involvement. “We’ll see how this goes forward. I think the people that came forward thought that he would cooperate in the investigation. I don’t think it came forward as a charge against him. It came forward as a statement of fact, which he is denying that he had any knowledge of.”
