More on Porter:
Brooke Baldwin
@BrookeBCNN
BREAKING -- @kaitlancollins is reporting that just before Rob Porter resigned amid allegations of spouse abuse, the White House was considering PROMOTING him to Deputy Chief of Staff. #CNN
Also
FBI Director Defends Handling of Background Check of Former Trump Aide
Christopher Wray tells Senate committee that agency ‘administratively closed’ file on Rob Porter, contradicting White House claim that probe was ongoing
www.wsj.com/articles/fbi-director-defends-handling-of-background-check-of-former-trump-aide-1518542822
[...]In January, the FBI “administratively closed” Mr. Porter’s file, Mr. Wray said. Earlier this month, the agency received “some additional information, and we passed that on as well,” he said. Mr. Porter didn’t receive a permanent national security clearance, according to White House officials.
“I’m quite confident that in this particular instance, the FBI followed existing protocols,” Mr. Wray added.
The FBI is responsible for conducting background checks on White House officials, but the decision on whether to issue a clearance rests with the White House.
Mr. Wray’s timeline strayed from the sequence of events offered by White House officials, who have said repeatedly in recent days that the FBI’s investigation into Mr. Porter was “ongoing.”
The White House has sought to shift the focus away from its handling of domestic-abuse allegations against Mr. Porter, facing criticism for allowing the aide to remain in his influential position inside the president’s inner circle.
Asked on Monday if the White House should have handled Mr. Porter’s situation any differently, Chief of Staff John Kelly said, “No.”
“It was all done right,” Mr. Kelly said in a brief interview.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Monday that the administration was following a “process that has been used for decades” to grant national security clearances, and that it would be appropriate to review the FBI’s background check process.