House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Nancy PelosiTrump puts Supreme Court fight at center of Ohio rally CDC causes new storm by pulling coronavirus guidance Overnight Health Care: CDC pulls revised guidance on coronavirus | Government watchdog finds supply shortages are harming US response | As virus pummels US, Europe sees its own spike MORE (D-Calif.) on Sunday responded to Rep. John Conyers John James ConyersBiden's immigration plan has serious problems Tlaib wins Michigan Democratic primary Tlaib holds lead in early vote count against primary challenger MORE Jr.'s (D-Mich.) announcement that he will step aside as the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee pending an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations, saying an individual's legacy "is not a license for harassment."

“Zero tolerance means consequences. I have asked for an ethics investigation, and as that investigation continues, Congressman Conyers has agreed to step aside as Ranking Member,” Pelosi said in a statement.

“As a woman and mother of four daughters, I particularly take any accusation of sexual harassment very seriously. Any credible accusation must be reviewed by the Ethics Committee expeditiously,” she continued. “We are at a watershed moment on this issue, and no matter how great an individual’s legacy, it is not a license for harassment. I commend the brave women coming forward.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Conyers announced earlier Sunday he is stepping aside as the committee's ranking member after allegations of sexual harassment. He denied allegations of sexual misconduct, including claims from former staffers that he made unwanted sexual advances.

Conyers admitted last week that he settled a wrongful dismissal complaint in 2015 with a former staffer who alleged she was fired because she would not "succumb to [his] sexual advances."

During an appearance just hours earlier on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Pelosi said Conyers is an “icon” who deserves due process.

Asked if she believed Conyers’s accusers, Pelosi responded, “I don’t know who they are," adding that they hadn't come forward.