Horrific photos showing former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter’s first ex-wife beaten and bruised were obtained by federal officials just one week after Trump’s inauguration, a new report has revealed.
Colbie Holderness, 37, a senior analyst for the U.S. government, exclusively spoke to DailyMail.com last week about her five-year marriage to the abusive political aide, 40.
Now, it has been revealed the photos were received by White House counsel Don McGahn last January, who failed to act on the matter, according to CNN.
The photos were reportedly sent as part of a ‘security clearance background check that was being conducted into Porter.’
Holderness, 37, who is a senior analyst for the U.S. government, spoke on the record to DailyMail.com about her five-year marriage following the on-the-record allegations by Rob Porter’s second wife, Jennifer Willoughby
Colbie told DailyMail.com that while she and Porter were on a vacation in Florence, Italy, a couple of years after they married in the early 2000s, Porter punched her in the face
Porter, left, who was White House Staff Secretary under President Donald Trump’s administration, resigned last week following the revelations
The FBI reportedly obtained abuse photos from Rob Porter’s ex-wife one week after Trump’s inauguration
Porter resigned from his position last Wednesday after Holderness and his second ex-wife Jennifer Willoughby, 39, both detailed the physical, verbal and mental abuse by Porter.
Holderness said: ‘He was never physically abusive until our honeymoon and that floored me.’
While Porter was initially supported by the White House, he formally resigned hours after Holderness came forward with the shocking new story.
Porter claimed in a statement the ‘outrageous allegations’ are untrue.
Abuse photos of Porter’s ex-wife Horderness were retrieved by White House counsel Don McGahn (right) last January
Porter has been described as one of the most important players in Trump’s daily Oval Office orbit, and helped him write last week’s State of the Union Address
‘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,’ Porter said in a statement last Wednesday.
‘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,’ he went on.
‘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.’
Holderness said: ‘We were arguing and he punched me in the face. He left visible marks when he punched me and I have pictures of that. I didn’t go the police because I was scared, I was in Italy alone and I didn’t know what to do.’
Holderness said that she never went to the police in the U.S. because she did not think that she would be believed
Holderness married Porter in June 2003 at New College Chapel in Oxford, England where Porter was attending as a Rhodes scholar
On Tuesday, a major congressional committee launched an investigation into how the White House managed the matter, chairman Trey Gowdy told CNN.
‘I’m going to direct questions to the FBI that I expect them to answer,’ Gowdy said.
‘If they don’t answer them, then they’re going to need to give me a really good reason, and you’ll learn that reason and you can judge whether or not it’s a sufficient reason or not.’
Meanwhile, FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers a background check had been cleared for Porter last summer.
The statement comes as a contradiction to the White House’s earlier assertion that investigations into Porter had not yet been completed.
Following Porter’s resignation, Gowdy said: ‘The chronology is not favorable for the White House.’
The White House did not provide a response about how Porter’s employment and clearance were handled or whether the committee requested information.