House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Monday addressed criminal charges against former Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, who was indicted by a grand jury this week on charges of hiding currency and lying to FBI officials about it.
The indictment said Mr. Hastert was in the process of paying $3.5 million in hush money to man he’d known from his days as a high school teacher and coach. News reports Friday said the man was a former student whom Mr. Hastert had sexually abused.
Mr. McCarthy, who did not serve in Congress while Mr. Hastert was speaker, called the news “very disturbing.”
But he said it would be “premature” to launch a review of the former speaker’s behavior during his time in Congress — or take down his portrait at the Capitol.
“Let the investigation take place,” Mr. McCarthy said.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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