Sexually abused children grow up ideally suited for "work as a high flyer in republican politics."

 So says the late Ryan Loskam.

Ryan Loskarn, former chief of staff to Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), was sexually molested at the ages of five and nine years old. The memories and images of the abuse tormented him, so he locked them away and made himself as emotionless as possible, which he said made him ideally suited for his work as a high flyer in Republican politics.

“As an adult I thought I was a tougher man because of the experience; that I was mentally stronger and less emotional than most. I told myself that I was superior to other people because I had dealt with this thing on my own,” he said.

He continued, “Those I worked with on the Hill would likely describe me as a controlled, independent, and rational person who could analyze a situation with little or no emotion. That’s how I viewed myself. In retrospect, the qualities that helped me succeed on Capitol Hill were probably developed partly as a result of the abuse and how it shaped me.”