Dennis Hastert, the longest-serving Republican Speaker of the US House of Representatives, has died at the age of 84, officials said Monday.
Hastert, whose political career ended in disgrace after he admitted sexually abusing teenage boys he had coached, died at his home in Illinois on Saturday night while receiving hospice care, according to the Kendall County Coroner’s Office.
He served as House Speaker for eight years, from 1999 to 2007, making him one of the most powerful figures in Washington during that period. The position also placed him second in the line of succession to the US presidency.
However, Hastert’s reputation was shattered years after he left Congress when a federal investigation into unusual bank withdrawals uncovered payments linked to an attempt to conceal sexual abuse dating to his time as a high school wrestling coach.
In 2015, Hastert pleaded guilty to illegally structuring cash withdrawals to avoid federal bank reporting requirements. The withdrawals were part of a $3.5 million agreement he reached with one of his victims.
During his sentencing the following year, Hastert publicly acknowledged for the first time that he had sexually abused boys while working as a teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School in Illinois between the 1960s and early 1980s.
“They looked to me and I took advantage of them,” Hastert told the court.
Prosecutors said the abuse involved at least five boys, with some of the victims as young as 14. Hastert could not be prosecuted for the sexual offences because the applicable statutes of limitations had expired.
Instead, he received a 15-month federal prison sentence for violating banking laws. US District Judge Thomas Durkin described him during sentencing as a “serial child molester.”
Hastert represented his Illinois district in the House from 1987 until 2007. He became Speaker following the turbulent exit of fellow Republican Newt Gingrich and the withdrawal of Gingrich’s intended successor, Bob Livingston.
He held the speakership until Democrats regained control of the House following the 2006 midterm elections.
Hastert was released from federal prison in 2017 after serving most of his sentence.