White House Chief Under Fire

White House chief of staff John Kelly's role in -- and the mayhem unleashed by -- Rob Porter's domestic abuse allegations is just the latest episode in a growing record of politically incorrect behavior by the decorated former general turned hardline West Wing fixer.

Kelly was initially credited with bringing military-style rigor to the pandemonium that raged in the Trump White House when he took the job last July.

But the controversy over how long he knew about domestic abuse allegations by White House staff secretary Porter has revived questions about his attitude and political philosophy. The White House's panicked response to the drama has meanwhile sparked uncertainty about how much Kelly has drained the discord and disorder of Trump's court.

It's possible that Trump has changed Kelly more than Kelly has changed Trump, and he is now showing sides of the ex-Marine's character that were for years hidden behind a cloak of military discipline.

Furthermore, Kelly's recent remarks on racial and cultural issues and his willingness to embrace Trump's uncompromising rhetoric and policy on immigration show him to be far more in tune with the populist, nationalist Trump philosophy than was initially assumed.

Kelly is now under scrutiny because sources say senior aides knew for months about the allegations, did not address them and in fact actively promoted Porter, who became a key figure in the White House before he resigned over the allegations, while protesting they did not tell the whole story.

Then, when the controversy exploded this week, Kelly's reaction came across as jarring and insufficient, especially at a time when American political and public life is being reshaped by revelations of abuse and sexual harassment.

The administration was left looking clumsy and out of touch, oblivious to the changed political climate and keen to cover up for one of their own, a state of affairs that naturally put Kelly, who is in charge of White House staff, under fire.

"If John Kelly is covering this up, he needs to be held accountable," Sen. Jon Tester, D-Montana, told CNN's "New Day," on Thursday. He added: "He better have a really good reason. Otherwise, he's gone, too."

The disconnect and scrambling at the top of the administration was reflected in two statements released by Kelly on Wednesday. In the first, drafted with the help of White House communications director Hope Hicks, who is in a relationship with Porter, Kelly poured praise on his right-hand man.

"Rob Porter is a man of true integrity and honor and I can't say enough good things about him. He is a friend, a confidante and a trusted professional. I am proud to serve alongside him," the statement from Kelly read.

Later, with the crisis building by the hour and with the White House hurriedly saying that Porter would now swiftly leave the administration and not stay on for a transition period, Kelly issued a new statement, that was still seen by many critics as falling well short of what was appropriate.

"There is no place for domestic violence in our society. I stand by my previous comments of the Rob Porter that I have come to know since becoming Chief of Staff, and believe every individual deserves the right to defend their reputation," Kelly said.

It was not the first time this week that Kelly had attracted condemnation. His comments that some undocumented immigrants were too "afraid" or "lazy" to sign up for protection under the Deferred Action on Child Arrivals (DACA) program was assailed by critics as racist. The criticism also may have complicated intricate congressional talks of compromise dealing with DACA recipients in return for extra funding for a border wall.

The remarks also confirmed Kelly as an important, hardline voice on immigration policy within the White House, which Democrats and some Republicans say is promoting unacceptable limits on legal immigration that could hamper hopes of reaching a final deal.

The week's turmoil represented exactly the kind of rhetorical indiscipline and botched crisis management that he was brought into the West Wing to end.

It also put him in the position of stealing media attention and reflecting badly on his boss. In the riotous history of the Trump administration that has been a bad place for aides to be.

Already, there are renewed whispers from sources close to the President that he is either fuming or unhappy with his chief of staff, and signs that his daughter Ivanka Trump is angry about how the Porter storm was handled.

There have long been stories that Trump is bristling about level of control Kelly has imposed on his freewheeling phone contacts with his friends and his loose management style. When Trump barged into a session with reporters that Kelly was holding in his office last month, some West Wing tea leaf watchers interpreted the move as a slight against the chief of staff.

Still, Trump went out of his way to quell the rumors.

"Thank you to General John Kelly, who is doing a fantastic job, and all of the Staff and others in the White House, for a job well done. Long hours and Fake reporting makes your job more difficult," Trump wrote on Twitter.