Rob Porter, White House Aide, Resigns After Accusations of Abuse
WASHINGTON — As the White House staff secretary, Rob Porter is not a public figure, but he is responsible for paper flow to the president, a job of crucial importance in this White House. He frequently travels with President Trump on Air Force One, and he helped write Mr. Trump’s first State of the Union address last month.
But on Wednesday, despite support from John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff, and other West Wing staff aides, Mr. Porter announced his resignation, a day after his two former wives accused him in interviews of physical abuse when they were married to him.
His troubles were not a complete secret at the White House: Two people close to the White House said that the allegations against him made by his former wives, Colbie Holderness and Jennifer Willoughby, had contributed to a delay in granting him a permanent security clearance.
In a statement, Mr. Porter said that “these allegations are simply false,” even as details of the alleged abuse and photographs of one of his former wives with a black eye that she said he gave her were widely circulated.
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Mr. Porter did not mention a departure date from the White House, and he still has the president’s support. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said Wednesday that Mr. Trump retained “full confidence” in Mr. Porter’s abilities, making it clear that the official preference was for Mr. Porter to remain in his job, and that it was his choice to leave.
The White House’s response was consistent with how both Mr. Trump and his aides have handled allegations of harassment or abuse against the president or his allies and advisers since the 2016 presidential campaign. Mr. Trump vigorously defended Roy S. Moore, the failed Alabama Republican Senate candidate, against allegations that included child molestation, and Ms. Sanders has said that multiple women who have accused the president of sexual misconduct were lying.
In the White House, Mr. Porter, 40, was widely regarded as a rising star. A Harvard graduate, Rhodes scholar and former Senate aide, Mr. Porter was an ally of Mr. Kelly’s and a steady force in a West Wing populated by aides vying for face time with — and influence over — the president. But, a year into his job, Mr. Porter did not have the permanent security clearance that aides of his rank always have.
Ms. Willoughby, Mr. Porter’s second wife, said in an interview on Wednesday that when the F.B.I. was conducting research for Mr. Porter’s security clearance, he asked her if she had told investigators about their marriage.
“He believed that that was holding up his clearance,” Ms. Willoughby said. “I did describe my marriage in detail.”
Ms. Willoughby, who said that she divorced Mr. Porter in November 2013, decided to go public about the allegations after facing pressure from Mr. Porter to issue a statement that she felt “minimized” her experiences in their marriage.
In addition to asking her about what she said to F.B.I. officials, Mr. Porter, she said, had been in touch several times over the course of the past year to urge her to take down a blog post in which she detailed abuse in their marriage without naming him.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/...esigns-abuse-white-house-staff-secretary.html
WASHINGTON — As the White House staff secretary, Rob Porter is not a public figure, but he is responsible for paper flow to the president, a job of crucial importance in this White House. He frequently travels with President Trump on Air Force One, and he helped write Mr. Trump’s first State of the Union address last month.
But on Wednesday, despite support from John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff, and other West Wing staff aides, Mr. Porter announced his resignation, a day after his two former wives accused him in interviews of physical abuse when they were married to him.
His troubles were not a complete secret at the White House: Two people close to the White House said that the allegations against him made by his former wives, Colbie Holderness and Jennifer Willoughby, had contributed to a delay in granting him a permanent security clearance.
In a statement, Mr. Porter said that “these allegations are simply false,” even as details of the alleged abuse and photographs of one of his former wives with a black eye that she said he gave her were widely circulated.
Continue reading the main story
Mr. Porter did not mention a departure date from the White House, and he still has the president’s support. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said Wednesday that Mr. Trump retained “full confidence” in Mr. Porter’s abilities, making it clear that the official preference was for Mr. Porter to remain in his job, and that it was his choice to leave.
The White House’s response was consistent with how both Mr. Trump and his aides have handled allegations of harassment or abuse against the president or his allies and advisers since the 2016 presidential campaign. Mr. Trump vigorously defended Roy S. Moore, the failed Alabama Republican Senate candidate, against allegations that included child molestation, and Ms. Sanders has said that multiple women who have accused the president of sexual misconduct were lying.
In the White House, Mr. Porter, 40, was widely regarded as a rising star. A Harvard graduate, Rhodes scholar and former Senate aide, Mr. Porter was an ally of Mr. Kelly’s and a steady force in a West Wing populated by aides vying for face time with — and influence over — the president. But, a year into his job, Mr. Porter did not have the permanent security clearance that aides of his rank always have.
Ms. Willoughby, Mr. Porter’s second wife, said in an interview on Wednesday that when the F.B.I. was conducting research for Mr. Porter’s security clearance, he asked her if she had told investigators about their marriage.
“He believed that that was holding up his clearance,” Ms. Willoughby said. “I did describe my marriage in detail.”
Ms. Willoughby, who said that she divorced Mr. Porter in November 2013, decided to go public about the allegations after facing pressure from Mr. Porter to issue a statement that she felt “minimized” her experiences in their marriage.
In addition to asking her about what she said to F.B.I. officials, Mr. Porter, she said, had been in touch several times over the course of the past year to urge her to take down a blog post in which she detailed abuse in their marriage without naming him.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/...esigns-abuse-white-house-staff-secretary.html
