On Friday, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) was nominated by the House GOP caucus to replace Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the House – third in line to the presidency. He was endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
But a cloud hangs over Jordan. He has been accused of failing to report abuse at Ohio State University, where he worked as an assistant wrestling coach from 1987 to 1995.
An upcoming documentary about abuse at Ohio State — directed by and starring George Clooney for HBO — may draw more attention to the scandal and prompt more questions about Jordan’s involvement.
Though Jordan has repeatedly denied knowing about the allegations against Dr. Richard Strauss, who allegedly abused at least 177 male students at the university between 1979 and 1996, former wrestlers have claimed that Jordan was present when players spoke about Strauss, who died by suicide in 2005.
“I remember a couple of occasions when we would bring up the abuse to Jim and he would say: ‘If [Strauss] ever tried that with me, I’d snap his neck like a stick of dried balsa would,'” recalled former student Dan Ritchie to the L.A. Times. “Our coaches all knew.”
Another wrestler, Mike Flusche, also remembers hearing the comment.
“I was one of the people in the locker room who heard him say that, so for Jim to say he didn’t know is just a flat-out lie,” he said.
