Ohio Representative Jim Jordan’s Controversial Past Reemerges.
Ohio Representative Jim Jordan has built a political career on the basis of justice for “fraud and abuse” while serving in his ninth term for the state’s 4th congressional district. However, his controversial past has reemerged at this year’s Democratic National Convention (DNC), held in Chicago.
Before entering the world of politics, Jordan was employed as an assistant coach to Ohio State University’s wrestling team from 1986 to 1994. He worked with Richard Strauss, a team doctor who allegedly abused at least 177 male students in his care.
Former athletes argue that the congressman knew of the rampant abuse but failed to take action. Many have even testified that Jordan worked “overtime to cover the whole scandal up.”
Three of those former athletes, Rocky Ratliff, Matt Reed, and Will Knight, arrived at the Democratic National Convention in support of Tamie Wilson – Jordan’s liberal opponent for Ohio’s 4th congressional district.
The trio bravely held signs that read “FIRE JIM JORDAN.” They were joined by Tad Deluca, a former University of Michigan student wrestler. Deluca has spoken publicly about similar abuse he experienced at the hands of the university’s athletic department doctor Robert Andserson. Anderson’s $490 million settlement to over a thousand victims in 2022 was one of the largest such settlements over campus sexual misconduct in U.S. history.
Now, these sexual abuse survivors have become advocates fighting for “stronger national protections for youth athletes around the country.” They have spoken with members of Congress and gained support that could eventually advance a bill that they believe would prevent future instances of child sexual assault.
Tamie Wilson’s Comprehensive Sexual Abuse Prevention and Accountability Act aims to nationalize protections for students, which currently vary from state to state. This would include “removing the statute of limitations to prosecute sexual abuse cases, implementing mandatory safety measures such as annual student safety classes focused on reinforcing reporting protocols, and expanding background checks on medical staff employed by educational institutions, which could include psychological exams with yearly requalification requirements based on student approval ratings.”
This legislation also promises to retract federal funding from any school caught concealing sexual abuse or harassment scandals.
“We’re all people with lives, and we’re just ordinary people trying to make a difference,” Rocky Ratliff insisted. “Everybody wants to forget [the abuse], including Ohio State.”
According to a 2021 survey, more than one in four college-aged athletes reported being sexually assaulted or harassed by someone in a position of power over them on campus.
Will Knight, employed now as a high school wrestling coach, says this: “I couldn’t imagine letting my high school wrestlers down. It doesn’t even compute in my brain.”
Jim Jordan has continuously denied any knowledge about the decades-long abuse the former athletes allegedly experienced. He has accused them of crafting “sequenced and choreographed accounts” and believes that the “misconduct was a left-wing conspiracy.”
“I knew of no abuse. Never heard of it. Never had any reported to me. If I had, I’d have dealt with it. Every single coach has said the same thing I have,” Jordan told Fox News in 2018.
Tamie Wilson, a mother herself, is incredibly passionate about her support for survivors. “If every parent knew what was going on, the alarm bells would be sounding. There would be such a huge movement,” she said. “It is so important that we protect our children. Parents need to know that they need to get more involved, and that is why I’m running for office.”
Authors: Alexis Kabat and Andy Goldwasser
