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Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann declined to call for a congressional investigation into the sex abuse allegations at Penn State University on Sunday, but said that she would want to beat accused child rapist Jerry Sandusky "to a pulp" if he had assaulted any of her children.
The former Penn State assistant football coach has been charged with 21 felony counts for allegedly abusing eight male minors over a period of 15 years.
Bachmann, who has raised five biological children and 23 foster children, expressed confidence on NBC's "Meet the Press" that "justice will be done" in the Sandusky case, especially now that it has become a national story.
But she said the case should stay at the state level rather than becoming a congressional issue.
"When something horrific happens people's automatic reaction is: Somebody needs to do something," Bachmann said. "But it doesn't necessarily mean that this issue should be kicked up to Congress. I really do believe this needs to stay exactly in the jurisdiction where the offense occurred. Congress has a lot of other things to pay attention to."
The presidential candidate's personal reaction to the story, however, was less restrained.
"This is so horrific on the level of a parent," she said. "I think about my children -- if that was my child -- and I think my automatic reaction would be – even though I'm a small woman – I'd want to go find that guy and beat him to a pulp. I think that's what any parent would want to do when they think about their child."
Bachmann, who often criticizes the mainstream media, also had rare words of support for the national media's attention to the story.
"The media gets beaten up a lot but I think this is exactly where the media is needed more than ever is to bring light on this situation. That's the best thing that can be done."
