Gov. Nikki Haley says she was physically abused as a child

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley opened up about past abuse in what The Greenville News called a "rare, personal disclosure" at a Monday news conference about child abuse.

“It doesn’t matter your background, it doesn’t matter your education, it doesn’t matter the wealth of your family. Every child is subject to child abuse.” the 41-year-old Republican said at a press conference discussing a recent report on the subject called "Silent Tears."

Haley had previously touched on own experience with abuse in her 2012 memoir, "Can’t Is Not an Option: My American Story," saying that a childhood caretakers had left her with bruises.

“I never wanted to go,” Haley said Monday. “But [my mother] didn’t know quite what it was and didn’t think anything of it.”

“One day I came home and I had a lot of bruises and a lot of issues," she added.

“When it happened to me, my parents didn’t know what to do. They didn’t know who to go to. No one knew how to handle it,” Haley said.