John Kelly Says He Never Considered Resigning After Porter Scandal

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly said Friday that he was notified about Rob Porter’s domestic abuse allegations only a day before the former Trump staffer resigned—and he never considered stepping down over the scandal. Kelly told reporters that he first found out about the allegations on Feb. 6, one day before Porter’s resignation became public. He also blamed his positive and critical statements about Porter to the “cascading nature of the reports regarding the former staff secretary.” He claimed that he had “absolutely nothing to even consider resigning over,” and verified FBI Director Christopher Wray’s assertion that the Bureau gave the White House information about Porter prior to the accusations surfacing in the press. Kelly, who has been embroiled in other White House conflicts, reportedly faced scrutiny for his handling of the scandal.