Disgraced ex-GOP Speaker Dennis Hastert dies at 84

Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), the former House Speaker who later went to prison for charges related to allegations of sexual abuse against underage boys, died over the weekend at his home “due to natural causes,” according to Kendall County, Ill., Coroner Jacquie Purcell.

Hastert, 84, served as the Speaker of the House from 1999 to 2007, until Democrats won back the House and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) succeeded him. He announced he would not seek reelection in 2008, ending his tenure in Congress. 

During his Speakership, Hastert helped to enact some of the most consequential legislation of the past half-century, including two rounds of massive tax cuts that were the signature domestic achievement of President George W. Bush. Hastert was also in power during the 9/11 attacks and oversaw the launch of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. 

Bush had said then that he was “indebted to Denny for his candid advice and strong support.”

But his legacy was quickly overshadowed by the revelations that he had paid hush money to a man alleging that Hastert had sexually abused him when Hastert was a high school wrestling coach in........

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