Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) shared photos of her "nude silhouette" on Capitol Hill on Tuesday claiming that her former fiancé took them without her permission. "Freedom is not a theory. It is the right to breathe. It is the right to dress and undress, to sleep without someone's camera filming your naked body," she said during a House Oversight Committee hearing.
"The Founders wrote liberty in parchment, but hidden cameras erase it in pixels. I speak not just as a lawmaker, but as a survivor," the congresswoman added, while renewing allegations of continuous sexual abuse against multiple men, including her ex-fiancé, Patrick Bryant, during the House subcommittee hearing on Tuesday.
Fighting for Every Woman's Right and Freedom
As Mace called on lawmakers to back a bill expanding restrictions on video voyeurism, large poster boards stood behind her displaying black-and-white photos, apparently captured by a security camera in a living room, showing a blurry figure.
Mace claimed that the blurry figure in the images was her, noting that she had outlined it in yellow.
"Behind me is a screenshot from one of the videos I found of myself. The yellow circle, my naked silhouette, is my naked body," she asserted. "I didn't know that I had been filmed. I didn't give my consent. I didn't give my permission."
The South Carolina Republican presented her testimony as part of a larger push to strengthen legal protection for victims of non-consensual recordings and sexual misconduct.
All the four men, including her ex-fiance, Patrick Bryant, have vehemently denied the allegations.
"I categorically deny the false and outrageous claims made by Nancy Mace," Bryant said in a statement. "I have never raped anyone. I have never hidden cameras. I have never harmed any woman. These accusations are not just false — they are malicious and deeply personal.
"My mistake was loving and trusting someone who later weaponized our relationship."
Bryant Claims Misuse of Power
Bryant alleges that Mace is making these accusations while acting in her role as a member of Congress to protect herself from potential legal consequences. The Constitution's Speech and Debate Clause grants legislators immunity from criminal charges and civil suits for actions carried out as part of their official legislative duties.
"If she believed them to be true and there was evidence to support her accusations, she would say them outside the chamber — away from her public role and protections and pursue them through proper legal channels," Bryant said. "She has not done so, because she cannot."
Mace first brought her allegations against Bryant and three of his business associates to light during a dramatic speech on the House floor in February.
In her powerful statement, the congresswoman accused her former fiancé of carrying out "disturbing" sexual offenses against her and at least a dozen other women — some of whom were minors.
She said she uncovered evidence of rape, voyeurism, and other forms of sexual abuse in a cache of over 10,000 videos and images she found on Bryant's phone.
The South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division is currently investigating Mace's claims. Bryant has said that he has "fully cooperated" with the investigation.
