Tag: Rob Porter

House Judiciary Committee subpoenas ex-White House aide Rob Porter

The House Judiciary Committee on Monday issued a subpoena to former White House staff secretary Rob Porter, a key witness in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s obstruction of justice investigation into President Donald Trump, as the panel weighs whether to recommend articles of impeachment.

Porter, who resigned his post last year amid allegations that he abused his two ex-wives, was at the president’s side during several episodes of potential obstruction chronicled in Mueller’s 448-page report on Russian interference in the 2016 election and Trump’s attempts to thwart the probe.

“The committee intends to hold hearings and obtain testimony over the coming months as part of its efforts to hold the president accountable as we move forward with our investigation into obstruction, corruption and abuse of power by Trump and his associates,” Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said in a statement announcing the subpoena, which was first reported by POLITICO.

View the complete August 26 article by Andrew Desiderio and Eliana Johnson on the Politico website here.

FBI casts doubt on White House timeline involving former aide accused of spouse abuse

The following article by Josh Dawsey was posted on the Washington Post website April 26, 2018:

The White House was informed early last year about potential problems concerning the background investigation of former aide Rob Porter, according to the FBI, casting doubt on the Trump administration’s timeline of events.

According to the FBI account provided this month to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, White House Counsel Donald McGahn first received “derogatory information” about Porter in March 2017. The letter did not say what the information included, but “derogatory information” often prevents individuals from receiving security clearances. Continue reading “FBI casts doubt on White House timeline involving former aide accused of spouse abuse”

Trump Talks of Bringing Back Rob Porter, Aide Accused of Spousal Abuse

The following article by Maggie Haberman was posted on the New York Times website March 26, 2018:

Rob Porter, the White House staff secretary, at Joint Base Andrews in February, shortly before he left the White House amid allegations that he had abused his two former wives. Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

WASHINGTON — President Trump has stayed in touch with Rob Porter, the former White House staff secretary who stepped down after allegations that he had abused his two former wives came to light, according to three people familiar with the conversations, and has told some advisers he hopes Mr. Porter returns to work in the West Wing.

The president’s calls with Mr. Porter have increased in the last few weeks, as the number of people he is close to in the White House has dwindled because of the large number of staff departures, the people familiar with the calls said.

In Mr. Trump’s orbit, few people are ever permanently exiled. He often sees aides who are subject to public criticism as extensions of himself, coming under fire because critics want to attack him, and he has described the Porter situation in those terms to some people, those briefed on the discussions said. Continue reading “Trump Talks of Bringing Back Rob Porter, Aide Accused of Spousal Abuse”

Why the White House timeline on Rob Porter’s clearance is questionable

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website February 14, 2018:

White House staff secretary Rob Porter, who resigned last week, hands President Trump a confirmation order for Jim Mattis as defense secretary, on Jan. 20, 2017. Credit: Evan Vucci/AP

For the entire time Rob Porter worked in the White House — as staff secretary to President Trump, meaning he was responsible for managing documents going to and from the president — he was operating under interim security clearance. That is not uncommon for new arrivals at a government agency: They get the job and interim clearance, fill out the lengthy SF-86 clearance application, talk to the FBI for a background check and wait for permanent clearance to be granted.

What is uncommon in Porter’s case is twofold. First, that he operated under interim clearance for as long as he did. Second, that someone at the White House clearly knew about the spousal abuse accusations for months before they led to Porter’s resignation — yet he never lost even that interim clearance. Continue reading “Why the White House timeline on Rob Porter’s clearance is questionable”

Gowdy Launches Oversight Investigation Into Rob Porter Scandal

The following article by Griffin Connolly was posted on the Roll Call website February 14, 2018:

‘How in the hell was he still employed?’ House Oversight Committee chairman asks

Rep Gowdy, R-SC, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, launched an investigation into the Rob Porter scandal Tuesday evening. Credit: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has launched an investigation into the White House’s handling of senior aide Rob Porter, who was not issued a permanent security clearance due to allegations of domestic abuse by his two ex-wives.

“Who knew what, when, and to what extent? Those are the questions that I think ought to be asked,” the committee’s chairman, Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, said Wednesday on CNN. Continue reading “Gowdy Launches Oversight Investigation Into Rob Porter Scandal”

Sarah Sanders is at her worst at a strange time — when she’s talking about respect for women

The following column by Margaret Sullivan was posted on the Washington Post website February 13, 2018:

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on Feb. 12 that President Trump “hopes for the best for all American citizens.” (Reuters)

She dripped disdain.

She oozed contempt.

“If you were paying attention to what I just read to you . . .” she huffed, like an exasperated teacher reprimanding a classroom troublemaker. Continue reading “Sarah Sanders is at her worst at a strange time — when she’s talking about respect for women”

FBI director contradicts White House account on background investigation of aide accused of spousal abuse

The following article by Ellen Nakashima and Shane Harris was posted on the Washington Post website February 13, 2018:

FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said Feb. 13 the FBI submitted a partial report on former White House aide Rob Porter’s background check in March 2017. (Reuters)

FBI Director Christopher A. Wray on Tuesday contradicted the White House’s account of when the bureau informed officials about the status of a senior aide’s security-clearance investigation.

White House officials said that they were first contacted in the summer by the FBI about senior aide Rob Porter’s clearance. They also said that the investigation was never completed and that they did not know the extent of the allegations against Porter. He stepped down last week after accusations of spousal abuse by his two ex-wives. Continue reading “FBI director contradicts White House account on background investigation of aide accused of spousal abuse”

Accusations Against Aide Renew Attention on White House Security Clearances

The following article by Michael D. Shear and Matthew Rosenberg was posted on the New York Times website February 12, 2018:

Credit: Tom Brenner/The New York Times

WASHINGTON — One week after the 2016 election, President-elect Donald J. Trump tweeted that he was “not trying to get ‘top level security clearance’ for my children,” calling such claims “a typically false news story.” But he said nothing at the time about his son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Nearly 15 months later, Mr. Kushner, now a senior White House adviser with a broad foreign policy portfolio that requires access to some of the intelligence community’s most closely guarded secrets, still has not succeeded in securing a permanent security clearance. The delay has left him operating on an interim status that allows him access to classified material while the F.B.I. continues working on his full background investigation.

Mr. Kushner’s status was similar to the status of others in the White House, including Rob Porter, the staff secretary who resigned last week after his two former wives alleged that he physically and emotionally abused them during their marriages. Continue reading “Accusations Against Aide Renew Attention on White House Security Clearances”

Rand Paul embarrasses himself by calling wife beating “complicated”

The following article by Alison R. Parker was posted on the ShareBlue website February 11, 2018:

Contrary to Sen. Rand Paul’s flustered claim, there is nothing “complicated” about whether or not punching your spouse in the face is wrong.

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul Credit: CBS

The cognitive dissonance on display from the Trump administration regarding the domestic abuse scandals surrounding two now-former White House aides was bizarrely crystallized in one statement by Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul.

Trump has gone out of his way to defend Rob Porter — despite photographic evidence of the violent abuse Porter inflicted on one of his ex-wives and testimony from another, as well as an ex-girlfriend — as well as former speechwriter David Sorensen. Continue reading “Rand Paul embarrasses himself by calling wife beating “complicated””

A hypothesis: When Trump speaks of women, he’s thinking of men

The following article by Avi Selk was posted on the Washington Post website February 11, 2018:

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump appeared with women who had accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct. Back when he was friends with the Clintons, Trump had disparaged some of the same women. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

As a seemingly endless string of sexual misconduct and domestic abuse allegations bring down people near the center of U.S. politics and culture, some have noticed an apparent pattern in President Trump’s responses to selected scandals.

We could even state it as a hypothesis:

Whether Donald Trump believes a woman’s claim of sexual misconduct depends on his relationship to the accused man.

So let’s test it. Continue reading “A hypothesis: When Trump speaks of women, he’s thinking of men”