Rep. Mace takes House floor to air sex abuse allegations

Congresswoman Nancy Mace, R-S.C., on Monday night said that God’s word had given her wisdom and courage as she was delivering her remarks on the House floor. She claimed to have accidentally uncovered evidence that men in her district were sexually abusing women and girls, filming the abuse, and engaging in sex trafficking. All four men who she claimed were involved denied wrongdoing in remarks to the South Carolina-based Post and Courier.

Who were these men? One of the men she accused of abusing women was her former fiancé. The others were friends and business associates of his, she said. She also claimed that her ex-fiancé sexually abused—and eventually sexually assaulted—her. She also accused him of taking photos of the female relatives of his business associates and recording women through tiny cameras without their knowledge.

Did she go to the police before the House floor? Mace said she had collected and documented evidence of the wrongdoing, and turned it over to law enforcement. But she claimed that South Carolina authorities told her she would be investigated and could be arrested. She accused South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson of failing to investigate her accusations.

Wilson’s office on Monday night said that Mace’s statements about the conduct of the South Carolina attorney general were categorically false. Wilson’s office denied that Mace had notified them about the allegations before her remarks from the House floor. The attorney general’s office also said that Wilson and Mace had attended several events together in recent months and that Mace had his cell phone number. However, she never made her concerns about the delays on the case known to Wilson, his office said in its released statement.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about an alleged assault against Nancy Mace on Capitol Hill that took place late last year.