"He will cooperate with any review," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said. | John Shinkle/POLITICO Pelosi defends Conyers as 'an icon'

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi defended Rep. John Conyers as "an icon in our country" on Sunday, after noting he deserves "due process" as he faces allegations of sexual misconduct.

"We are strengthened by due process," the California Democrat said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "Just because someone is accused — and was it one accusation? Is it two? I think there has to be — John Conyers is an icon in our country. He has done a great deal to protect women — Violence Against Women Act, which the left — right-wing — is now quoting me as praising him for his work on that, and he did great work on that.


"But the fact is, as John reviews his case, which he knows, which I don’t, I believe he will do the right thing," Pelosi said.

BuzzFeed reported last week the Democratic congressman from Michigan “repeatedly made sexual advances to female staff that included requests for sexual favors, contacting and transporting other women with whom they believed Conyers was having affairs, caressing their hands sexually, and rubbing their legs and backs in public.”

Pelosi demurred when asked if she believed the women who have accused Conyers.

"I don’t know who they are," she said. "Do you? They have not really come forward."

The matter is one left to the House Ethics Committee, Pelosi said, adding she has asked it to review whether Conyers misused congressional funds to pay for a settlement to one of his accusers.

"He will cooperate with any review," Pelosi said on Sunday.

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Pelosi also said she believe Conyers "understands what is at stake here and [that] he will do the right thing."

"But all of these non-disclosure agreements have to go," she said. "By the way, some of them are there to protect the victim because they didn’t want some of it to be public. But that’s over. In other words, if the victim wants to be private, she can be — he or she can be."

Asked whether Conyers should resign over the allegations, Pelosi said he "will do the right thing in terms of what he knows about his situation."

"He’s entitled to due process," Pelosi said. "But women are entitled to due process as well."

Later Sunday, Conyers announced his decision to step down as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee. Pelosi also released a statement saying that there is "zero tolerance for sexual harassment." She added that "no matter how great an individual's legacy," there is never a license for harassment.

The House will vote this week on a resolution requiring all lawmakers and staff to complete anti-harassment training, a major victory for Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) who has pushed the legislation.