John Kelly apparently mischaracterized Rep. Frederica Wilson's 2015 FBI speech, new video shows

Frederica Wilson.
(Image credit: Joe Skipper/Getty Images)

Video of a 2015 speech by Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.), published Friday by the South Florida Sun Sentinel, apparently proves that comments she made at the dedication of an FBI building did not match White House Chief of Staff John Kelly's portrayal of them when he criticized the congresswoman Thursday. In addition to skewering Wilson for sharing the details of a phone call between President Trump and the widow of a U.S. service member killed in Niger, Kelly claimed Wilson once "talked about how she was instrumental in getting the funding for" a Florida FBI building and that she told the audience in 2015 that she "just called up President [Barack] Obama, and on that phone call, he gave the money, the $20 million, to build the building, and she sat down."

Wilson disputed Kelly's characterization: "He shouldn't be able to just say that, that is terrible," she told the Miami Herald. "This has become totally personal."

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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.