House Oversight Committee to investigate Rob Porter scandal

Trey Gowdy.
(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/CNNPolitics)

The House Oversight Committee has launched an investigation into the scandal involving former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter, committee chairman Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) confirmed Wednesday. Porter resigned last week after his ex-wives went public with claims of physical and verbal abuse, although it was reportedly widely known in the West Wing last fall that Porter's lack of security clearance was due in part to the charges.

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the committee's ranking member, called for a review of the security clearance process in a letter to Gowdy the day after allegations about Porter came out, Newsweek reports. Speaking on CNN, Gowdy said: "I'm going to direct questions to the FBI that I expect them to answer. And if they don't answer them, then they're going to need to give me a really good reason." Watch below. Jeva Lange

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.