The Republican speaker of Kentucky’s House of Representatives has resigned his leadership position more than two months after acknowledging he secretly settled a sexual harassment claim and paid to keep it quiet.
Jeff Hoover offered Monday (1/8) to resign, but only if the House accepts. Moments later Speaker Pro Tem David Osborne ruled it had been accepted.
Hoover denied sexual harassment, but said he sent inappropriate but consensual text messages to a woman who once worked for the House Republican Caucus. In a blistering speech on the House floor, Hoover denounced his critics, including Republican Governor Matt Bevin, for telling lies that he said were from the “deepest pit of Hell.”
But Hoover said he didn’t want to be a distraction for the House. He also vowed to exact revenge from the staffers and lawmakers he says orchestrated his demise, “regardless of who they are and the position they hold.”
His fiery speech left some in the House wondering how the scandal would not continue to distract from the legislature’s business. House Speaker Pro Tem David Osborne insisted the scandal has not slowed down the legislature’s work.
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