White House officials knew about the allegations of domestic abuse levied against staff secretary Rob Porter by two of his ex-wives months before the Daily Mail reported about it Tuesday, but scrambled to cover it up in an attempt to keep him on staff, CNN reports.
White House chief of staff John Kelly and press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders pushed back against the accusations, and Kelly even implored Porter not to quit. President Donald Trump only learned of the allegations last week, according to CNN.
Kelly, who wrote glowing statements about Porter in his initial response to the accusations, later backtracked because he had not seen the latest report that included photographs of one of the women with a black eye, according to CNN's Jim Acosta.
The Daily Mail reported on allegations of domestic abuse by Porter's first wife, Colbie Holderness, and second wife, Jennifer Willoughby.
Porter, described as a rising star in Trump's circle, resigned but denied the allegations.
Holderness, 37, told the Daily Mail that Porter started abusing her after their marriage in 2000.
"At times, the way he would be physically violent with me was very odd," she said. "He would throw me down on the bed, put his full body weight on top of me, then grind a knee or elbow into my body, expressing rage."
Porter, she said, also punched her in the face and choked her.
Willoughby, 39, said Porter had a horrible temper, once dragging her out of the shower to yell at her. She filed a protective order against him in 2009, and called police in 2010 when Porter, she said, punched the glass on the door to their home.
Both women detailed the allegations to the FBI when the agency was conducting a background check on him.
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