Rep. Aaron Schock's father said that he believes his son has been unfairly targeted because he is "very popular" and "a little different."
"He wears...stylish clothing, and yet he's not gay," Richard Schock told the ABC affiliate WLS in Chicago. "He's not married, and he's not running around with women. So everyone is throwing up their arms — they can't figure out Aaron. So he must be crooked." Earlier this week, the Illinois Republican announced he will resign amid several ethics scandals, including one involving the use of public funds to decorate his office like Downton Abbey. "It all depends on what the Department of Justice wants to do," Richard Schock said, adding that his son will land on his feet, eventually. "Ten years from now, whatever he's doing he will be successful at. Two years from now he will be successful if he's not in jail."
A law enforcement source told ABC that the FBI has not launched an investigation into Schock's actions, but they are "monitoring" him. Richard Schock is standing by his son, but said he isn't sure "what all went through his mind," adding: "He got a little careless. Some things maybe he thought didn't apply to him."
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