Trump backs Jordan ‘100 percent’ against claims he ignored OSU sex abuse

President Donald Trump weighed in with support for U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, who is facing accusations that he failed to report sex abuse within the Ohio State University wrestling program when he was a coach.

Aboard Air Force One, Trump said he believes Jordan over the accusers.

“Jim Jordan is one of the most outstanding people I’ve met since I’ve been in Washington. I believe him 100 percent. No question in my mind. He’s an outstanding man,” the president said, according to a media pool report.

Related: Jordan questions timing of Ohio State sex abuse allegations

Meanwhile, a fourth OSU wrestler came forward to say Jordan knew of the abuse, according to NBC News, which broke the original story this week.

Jordan, R-Urbana, worked as an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from 1986-94, overlapping with Dr. Richard Strauss who worked as a team physician, student services doctor, faculty member and professor emeritus from 1978-98. The university hired outside investigators to look into claims by former students and athletes that Strauss inappropriately touched them during medical appointments and took long showers and saunas with athletes.

Strauss died by suicide in 2005 at age 67.

Jordan denies allegations that he knew that Strauss was a sexual predator but failed to report the alleged abuse.

Late on Thursday, a fourth former wrestler, Shawn Dailey, told NBC News that he was groped half a dozen times by Strauss in the mid-’90s when Jordan was a coach. Dailey told NBC News that Jordan took part in conversations where Strauss’ abuse of other wrestlers came up.

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