Fox & Friends cohost Ainsley Earhardt explicitly asked Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley to advise Trump to “come out against domestic violence.”
Earhardt’s plea came at the end of a discussion in which the three cohosts of Trump’s favorite morning show indirectly suggested he had made some missteps in his handling of the Rob Porter/domestic violence/national security scandal.
BRIAN KILMEADE (COHOST) So [according to Axios’ Jonathan Swan], the president is just as outraged as many Americans about the alleged domestic abuse which looks pretty strong, the evidence strong against Porter. Why wouldn’t he say that publicly or do you think Jonathan Swan is wrong?
GIDLEY: I don’t know if he’s going to say that publicly or not. I’ve not spoken with the president about this but I can say we lean on a process here at the White House and, quite frankly, as soon as we found out about this on Tuesday, by Wednesday, Rob Porter was gone. The president has been very clear that all forms of abuse, all forms of battery against women are deplorable and disgusting.
FACT CHECK: It’s not true that Porter was gone as soon as the White House found about his abusive behavior. From Think Progress:
White House counsel Don McGann [sic] was informed about the allegations against Porter in January 2017 and Chief of Staff John Kelly was fully informed since last fall. Even after the allegations were made public, Kelly’s initial response was a full-throated defense of Porter.
[…]
Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah acknowledged last week that senior White House officials knew about the abuse allegations against Porter for months, but allowed him to stay on in his role handling sensitive White House documents anyway. Shah said the decision to move on from Porter was only made when the photo of his ex-wife with a black eye was published by media outlets.
As for Trump being “very clear” that “all forms of abuse” are “deplorable and disgusting” there’s Access Hollywood video evidence of him boasting about grabbing women “by the p***y” to contradict that.
Instead of challenging Gidley on the falsehoods, Kilmeade said pointedly, “But he hasn’t said that.” It was the first indication that the Curvy Couch was more interested in sending Trump a little tough love than in acting as any kind of truth teller.
Cohost Steve Doocy immediately segued to another suggestion.
DOOCY: Something else that is just as troubling is apparently Mr. Porter did not ultimately have his security clearance because of the problems in his past. Is the White House going through everybody at the White House so close to the president making sure [they have clearance]?
Gidley evaded the question. He called that a “process done by career officials” and said, “The White House doesn’t interfere in those processes.”
Doocy did not press the point, again indicating that his comments were aimed more for Trump than for viewers.
That’s when Earhardt made the goal explicit:
EARHARDT: Hogan, will you and Sarah Huckabee Sanders, will y’all get together and maybe advise him and talk to him about, this is an opportunity when he can come out against domestic violence? I mean those pictures are horrific.
GIDLEY: They were, absolutely, but the president has been out against domestic violence for a long time.
But as Think Progress also noted, that has not been the messaging coming from Trump so far:
Instead of condemning domestic violence, Trump responded to the accusations against Porter on Friday by praising him and wishing him well. Then, on Saturday, Trump dismissed the allegations and strongly suggested that Porter had been wrongfully accused.
Peoples lives are being shattered and destroyed by a mere allegation. Some are true and some are false. Some are old and some are new. There is no recovery for someone falsely accused - life and career are gone. Is there no such thing any longer as Due Process?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2018
Watch the Trump Friends send a message to their Fan-in-Chief below, from the February 12, 2018 Fox & Friends, via tpmtv.