Wheaton cuts ties with Hastert amid misconduct allegations

Wheaton College announced late Sunday it would remove Dennis Hastert’s name from its Center for Economics, Government, and Public Policy building after federal officials indicted the former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives on illegal banking charges. Hastert, a Wheaton alum, also resigned from the center’s board of directors, as well as his positions with Chicago-based CME Group and the Washington lobbying firm Dickstein Shapiro LLC.

“We commit ourselves to pray for all involved, including Speaker Hastert, his family, and those who may have been harmed by any inappropriate behavior, and to continue the work and mission of the Wheaton College Center for Economics, Government, and Public Policy,” the college said in a statement announcing the center’s name change.

Hastert, 73, has not responded publicly to the charges. He is accused of paying hush money to as as-yet-unnamed person to conceal past misconduct. Late Friday, several media outlets reported the incident involved molestation of a minor boy. Before entering politics, Hastert was a wrestling coach at a high school in Yorkville, Ill., between 1965 and 1981.

On Sunday, residents of Hastert’s former hometown struggled to remember any instances of suspicious behavior or whispers of allegations. Few could think of anything that stood out.

“Now everybody is guessing who it is,” said Bob Evans, Hastert’s assistant wrestling coach, who joined him in taking Boy Scouts camping and fishing in northern Minnesota. “This puts a cloud over what was a pretty special time for people.”

Evans said he was angry that the allegations against Hastert were anonymous.

No one has approached the school district where Hastert worked with claims of misconduct, officials there said. The district didn’t even know about the allegations until the indictment came out Thursday. In addition to teaching history and coaching the wrestling team, Hastert volunteered with the Boy Scouts for 17 years.

According to the indictment, Hastert agreed to pay $3.5 million to keep the allegations against him quiet. But Neal Ament, 66, a high school senior when Hastert arrived at Yorkville, held on to hope his old teacher hadn’t really done anything wrong.

“Hopefully this will end up being a big misunderstanding,” he said.

Voters sent Hastert to Washington in 1987. His colleagues made him House speaker in 1998, after Newt Gingrich resigned. He held that position until he left office in 2007, the longest tenure for a Republican House leader.

The two charges against Hastert both carry potential fines of up to $250,000 and five years in prison.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.