--- title: President Trump Defends Rob Porter Amid Abuse Allegations description: President Trump defended former staff secretary Rob Porter, his first statement since Porter resigned amid domestic abuse allegations. canonical: https://time.com/5142131/president-trump-defends-rob-porter-innocent/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-02-09T18:32:38.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T19:13:34.535Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Trump Defends Ex-Staffer Accused of Domestic Violence og:description: "He says he's innocent" og:url: https://time.com/5142131/president-trump-defends-rob-porter-innocent/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d5fb904d01c4a0a/6988fada97cdff76fc6b4320/gettyimages-915020294.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: U.S. President Donald Trump Hosts Law Enforcement Round Table On MS-13 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump Defends Ex-Staffer Accused of Domestic Violence twitter:description: "He says he's innocent" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d5fb904d01c4a0a/6988fada97cdff76fc6b4320/gettyimages-915020294.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'He Says He's Innocent.' 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Feb 9, 2018 6:32 PM UTC  U.S. President Donald Trump hosts a law enforcement round table on MS-13 at the White House on February 6, 2018 in Washington, DC. U.S. President Donald Trump hosts a law enforcement round table on MS-13 at the White House on February 6, 2018 in Washington, DC. Pool—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Feb 9, 2018 6:32 PM UTC President Trump [defended former staff secretary Rob Porter](http://time.com/5139760/rob-porter-donald-trump-domestic-violence/) Friday afternoon, making his first public statement since Porter resigned this week amid allegations of domestic violence. “He says he’s innocent, and I think you have to remember that,” Trump said speaking to reporters at the White House. “He said very strongly yesterday that he’s innocent.” Porter resigned Wednesday after his two ex-wives [detailed allegations of domestic violence](http://time.com/5139760/rob-porter-donald-trump-domestic-violence/) to the [_Daily Mail_](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5362823/Ex-wife-WH-aide-dating-Hope-Hicks-says-choked-her.html), which also published a photograph showing one of their alleged injuries and a restraining order filed in 2010\. Both women said they had [notified the FBI](http://www.cnn.com/2018/02/07/politics/rob-porter-ex-wives-white-house/index.html) about the abuse while Porter was being vetted for a security clearance, which raised questions about when members of the White House knew of the allegations. After submitting his resignation, Porter called the allegations “outrageous” and “simply false.” “He did a very good job when he was in the White House, and we hope he has a wonderful career,” Trump said Friday. “It was very sad when we heard about it, and certainly he’s also very sad . . . We absolutely wish him well.” White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has also defended Porter, saying “there is no place for domestic violence in our society” after the photograph of his ex-wife with a black eye surfaced, but standing by his initial statement that Porter “is a man of true integrity and honor.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5142131/president-trump-defends-rob-porter-innocent/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5142131/president-trump-defends-rob-porter-innocent/"},"headline":"'He Says He's Innocent.' 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