Kellyanne Conway steps in it
The Rob Porter domestic violence scandal and John Kelly coverup scandal were bad enough for the White House before Donald Trump opened his mouth and insisted that we should all believe Porter, and not his female accusers, despite the evidence. So how did Trump and his men decide to try to fix the mess? By sending a woman on television to defend them, under the mistaken belief that it would somehow give them cover. Not only did it not work, Kellyanne Conway totally stepped in it, making the scandal even worse.
Two of Porter’s ex-wives have accused him of beating them up. The evidence includes everything from photos of a battered face to a protective restraining order. This raised the question of whether Trump and his White House put the women working there in danger by keeping him on the job, when they knew about his past. More specifically, Porter began dating Trump Communications Director Hope Hicks while working with her. So was Hicks in physical danger? According to Kellyanne, the answer was no, and for an astoundingly offensive reason.
Kellyanne Conway stated on CNN this morning that Hope Hicks couldn’t have been in danger because she’s “strong” and “capable.” Wait, what is that supposed to mean? We’re not talking about whether Hicks can handle the rigors of the job. We’re talking about whether she was at risk of getting beaten up by an alleged serial domestic abuser. That has nothing to do with whether a woman is strong or capable. What is Conway saying, that only weak-willed women get punched in the face by men? What a horrid thing to suggest.
And yet there it is. Kellyanne Conway is putting the blame for domestic abuse on the female victims, even as Donald Trump is insisting that we believe the men who are accused instead of the women accusing them. What is wrong with these monsters? In any case, Kellyanne just stepped in it and made the entire scandal worse for Trump.
