“He would get angry and throw me down on a soft surface — to his credit, it was always a soft surface like a couch or a bed — and he would lay on top of me shaking me, or rubbing an elbow or a knee into me,” Holderness told the publication. “He graduated to choking me, not ever hard enough to make me pass out, or frankly to leave marks, but it was frightening and dehumanizing.”
“He was always a hair-trigger away,” she added.
Jennifer Willoughby, Porter’s second ex-wife, told the Daily Mail that Porter physically abused her, blaming his violent behavior on his first marriage with Holderness. “He would say that he was so used to being treated this way by his ex-wife that he was projecting that on to me. That was the explanation.”
In June 2010, Willoughby filed a temporary protective order against Porter after he punched in a glass door during the couple’s separation.
The FBI apparently interviewed both Holderness and Willoughby, presumably in regards to Porter’s security clearance at the White House. Porter has never gained security clearance, and there is speculation that it is likely due to his aggressive past.
“a senior administration official said Kelly was previously aware of the 2010 protective order, which prevented Porter from getting a full security clearance” https://t.co/xiK34f1q7c
— Alex Burns (@alexburnsNYT) February 7, 2018
The lack of a security clearance would seemingly be detrimental to Porter’s position at the White House — that is, unless he was simply handling classified documents without clearance.
Porter denied the allegations from his ex-wives in an official statement:
These outrageous allegations are simply false. I took the photos given to the media nearly 15 years ago and the reality behind them is nowhere close to what is being described. I have been transparent and truthful about these vile claims, but I will not further engage publicly with a coordinated smear campaign.My commitment to public service speaks for itself. I have always put duty to country first and treated others with respect. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have served in the Trump Administration and will seek to ensure a smooth transition when I leave the White House.
It should be noted that Porter is apparently engaged in a romantic relationship with White House communications director Hope Hicks, who apparently crafted his official statement.
CNN: White House communications director Hope Hicks, who has been in a romantic relationship with Rob Porter, was involved in crafting the response to the allegations of domestic abuse leveled against Porter on Tuesday.
— Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro) February 7, 2018
Many of Porter’s colleagues have chosen to stand by him amidst the allegation, and have refused to place any belief in the women coming forward.