getting ready for a busy week. infrastructure week finally here. make sure you stick around for the white house briefing coming up at the top of the hour. thanks for joining us. i'm dana perino. here's shepard smith. >> shepard: a live look now. there it is. that is the white house briefing room. the briefing was to have begin at 2:00 eastern standard time. they changed that to 3:00 eastern standard time this afternoon. now they have changed that to 3:30 eastern standard time. the briefing will happen and we'll have it on fox news channel. i'm shepard smith in new york. this is "shepard smith reporting." we're expecting questions about how the white house handled domestic abuse accusations about rob porter. president trump tweeted over the weekend, people's lives are being shattered and destroyed by allegations. some are true, some are false. some are old, some are new. there is no recovery for someone falsely accused.

life in career are gone. is there no such thing any longer as due process? that was from the president without context. today the white house told fox news channel it has zero tolerance for domestic violence. >> the president deplores, thinks that domestic violence is grotesque. he's said that on multiple occasions. there's no place for it in this country or the white house. >> hogan gidley. he says president trump has full confidence in chief of staff john kelly. when the news broke, john kelly called porter a man of true integrity and honor. that was a quote. he said he was proud to serve alongside him. chief of staff kelly later said he was shocked by the accusations and porter resigned. the white house says the turning point is when kelly saw the photos of kelly's first wife with a black eye. she claims that porter punched

her in the face in an argument in 2005. porter denies the accusations calling them outrageous. keep in mind, white house has known about this since november. they've known about it because the two former wives went to the fbi and told them. then the fbi came to the white house and told if white house. further, he was not able to get security clearance and still does not have it now that he's gone. the chief white house correspondent john roberts is live at the white house. john? >> good afternoon. the time line for this now coming into somewhat clearer focus. there's still a lot of fuzz around the edges here that we'll try to get more answers on. white house counsel now in november that something was going on with rob porter. he told the white house counsel that his two ex-wives had been talking to the fbi and it was a long time ago they talked to the fbi and had been making allegations against him. this was in interviews for his security clearance, which as you

pointed out he never got. sources say porter down played the allegations and it wasn't until wednesday when the photos of his first wife with the black eye surfaced that the white house learned the full extent of what his ex-wife says happened. around the same time that mcgann learned of the allegations in november, the woman that porter was dating at the time called mcgann to say that porter was abusive to her and other problems as well that she was concerned about. that woman had a conversation with porter's first wife in january of last year in which colby holderness told her of the black eye. that woman continued to date porter. she also worked in the administration, she was afraid that she would lose her job if she broke up with porter. now the president, as you pointed out, shep, offered a measure of support to porter over the weekend in that tweet. also on friday when he was talking to reporters, the president reminded people that porter continues to insist that

he is innocent of all of this. brew the white house reaction this morning is that the president believed what the two women were saying. listen here. >> i think the president like all of us were saddened and surprised by the revelations that they came forward last week. rob was a friend to many of us. he did a great job here in the building. we can have zero tolerance for domestic violence against women. the president in my conversation with him has been very clear about that as well. >> here's the piece in all of this missing, shep. colby holderness, his first ex-wife, spoke with the fbi on january 25 of last year. more than a year ago. jenny willoughby, his second wife spoke to the fbi. fbi has known that there was material out there that could have been used as potential blackmail about porter. i'm told by people that worked in previous administrations that at some point a long time ago, probably talking end of february, beginning of march, somebody from the fbi should have come if this was operating

as other white houses have to the white house to the counsel's office or maybe to the chief of staff and said, just want to let you know, there's things in this person's file that would prohibit that person from getting a permanent security clearance. might want to do something about that and in most administrations because that person wasn't going to get a security clearance, they would have been let go back then. but either that didn't happen, shep or it happened and people here aren't saying that it happened. shep? >> shepard: how is it possible that the person who reads everything that goes to the president of the united states' desk, everything, how is it possible that that person does that while doesn't have a security clearance? that makes no sense. >> he had an interim security clearance. most interim security clearances don't last that long. this one landed a particularly long time. the white house insists a security clearance investigation was ongoing.

again, shep, i'm told people in past administrations that something like this never would have passed muster for a security clearance and that that would have been made clear to the white house in a normal operating situation a long, long time ago, probably -- >> shepard: you're saying this is on the fbi, that the fbi didn't make it clear? >> i'm not saying that. i'm saying the white house is telling us they didn't hear anything from the fbi. whether they did and they're not telling us, that's a question that we'll ask this afternoon. >> shepard: president trump unveiling his budget proposal and more. >> we're going to make our infrastructure modernized and we're really way behind schedule. we're way behind other countries. we always led the way for many, many years. then a number of decades ago, it slowed down and over the last eight years and 15 years, to be honest, it's come to a halt. this morning i submitted

legislative principles to congress that will spur the biggest and boldest infrastructure investment in american history. >> shepard: legislative principles that will spur it. did you hear that? democrats are slamming the plan saying that lots of americans could end up paying for it in higher tolls and local taxes. the federal government is not paying for this. the president says we'll use $200 billion in federal money. we can do that. and then the rest of it will come from the locals. we'll give money to rural areas. but locals are going to pay for everything else. states and locals. chuck schumer says, i'm quoting here "the president's infrastructure proposal would do very little to make our ailing infrastructure better, but would put unsustainable burdens on our local government and lead to trump tolls all over the country. that is the idea, right, john roberts? it's too let the locals pay for this and how they pay for it is up to them. they can tax you locally, put tolls up do, what they want to do but the federal government is

not paying for it, thanks. >> the president said the total amount would be $1.5 to 1.7 trillion. the federal share would be about $200 million. seed money to be get to statements and local authorities in the form of grants or loans. they're pointing some programs like a infrastructure transportation program. there's no question, we see it here in washington d.c. where we have a toll road all the way up to dulles airport, highway 66 was just turned into a toll road during the peak traffic periods. so maybe that is a model for what's going on or what will go on as a result of this infrastructure plan. one of the other fundamental parts that goes beyond funding is this idea of streamlining the permit process, that can be

wrapped up in horrible bureaucratic red tape. the president said he would streamline the permitting process to be two years or less. and warning the states if they want the federal seed money, they have to couple to the table as well. >> when we give you as governors and mayors and people representing your great states, we give you money and you can't get your approvals, i guess we're going to have to take the money back or you're not going to build. some of you are sitting around the table that i know, some of the governors, you'll get the permits. i have no doubts. others are sitting around the table, i don't think they'll get theirs so fast. but you'll have to get it or you won't build. we can't give you money and you're going to take 15 years to get a permit. in one state, took 17 years for a basic roadway to get a permit. >> the president said if you can't get the permits quickly, the federal government is not going to hand you bills and wait

for the permits, a couple other things in the budget that is interesting to note, shep. the budget for fiscal year 18-19 continues to fund robert mueller's office to the tune of $26,535,095. the white house has been talking about the special counsel wrapping up its investigation soon. that would be the trump part of the investigation but clearly they have court cases to go to. so the office of special counsel will continue to need the money. here's something that was buried in the budget, shep. the president wants to set aside $2.2 billion to build a brand new shiny and secure building for the fbi. can't make this stuff up, shep. >> shepard: wow. john roberts on the north lawn. see you in a few minutes. back to the fallout from the rob porter accusations. he's accused of beating his two

previous wives by his two previous wives that have spoken with the fbi. the white house has known about this since november if not before. let's bring in jordan fabian. there seems to be a pattern here observed by "the new york times" this morning and others which -- they just observed it, that the president seems to take up for the guy in these things. there's roy moore, there's this, a couple of them around this building. there's a pattern. >> yeah. that's something that clearly angered some folks in the me too movement, this burgeoning movement of women that have spoke up against allegations of abuse ever since last year. it's something that democrats think that they can seize upon in the mid-terms. they think it can be a motivating issue for women. not necessarily this porter incident. taken together with the other incidents, it's something that they can use to get women motivated to go to the polls in november and elect democrats to office. >> shepard: were you ever

something other than a political reporter? did you ever cover another beat for someone? >> in college i covered construction issues. >> shepard: i'm covered a crime beat in the day in fort myers when i worked at nbc. one thing you learned while covering the crime beat is timeline. one of the things that you can couldn't on as a reporter, if you can get the timeline nailed down by the principles, the people involved in the case, if you have the timeline, the timeline made sense and fit together, they were usually telling you that because the timeline worked fine for them. you can't get the timeline from people when the timeline doesn't work for you. when the timeline doesn't work, you get fuzzy. give a little here, give a little there. you never know what they're talking about. on timeline, we got nothing but fuzzy, which makes me wonder. >> yeah, that's right. there's been conflicting versions of rob porter's exit. we haven't gotten a lot of clarity ever since then.

the biggest question is, you know, what is the president feeling about this. in public he's defended rob porter and defended men that have been accused of abuse by women, in private there's reports saying the president was disgusted and was unhappy with rob porter's behavior. the president has not come out and said that publicly. so all of us are looking for clarity on what does the president think about this and what does he do about it once he learned about it. >> shepard: if they didn't know, they could come out and explain, we didn't know. here's why. when we know, even when we got the picture, that's when we did this. we didn't know. we wouldn't have had a man being the last one to hold the papers before the president sees -- we wouldn't have had a man that close to the president that couldn't get, could not get a clearance, we wouldn't have him there if we had known, looks like he beat his last two wives. we wouldn't have had that. certainly wouldn't have if that's the case had hope hicks, who he was now dating, be

involved in the writing of the explanation of whatever just happened. it's a mish mosh of squishy right now. i know you reporters will get a time line. it matters and always does. >> yeah, absolutely. i would note also in these situations when there's been a circular firing squad here at the white house, something goes wrong, the tendency is to blame others or blame the media or something else for what is going on. there's rarely anybody that steps forward and takes responsibility for making mistakes. the closest we got is last thursday when the spokesman came up here to the briefing room and said we could have done better. that feeling is shared among a lot of people here. >> shepard: here's a good thing to know. when kelly said, when john kelly said rob porter is a man of true integrity and honor and i can't say enough good things about him, did he know then from the fbi what we're led to believe

the white house knew? that's what we'll find out today. it's great to see you. thank you. >> you too. >> shepard: coming up, we're going to get to the white house for the briefing and the dow. have you seen the dow? the dow is up 450. 550. hang on. we took legendary,

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immigration, we're told. they're set to vote in a couple hours to start the debate. one of the big questions, what happens to the dreamers. those, as you should know by now, as i'm sure you do, the hunts of thousands of immigrants whose parents brought them to the united states as children without documents. in september, president trump ended the program. remember, the reason there is no protection for dreamers is was the program that protected them was ended by trump. president trump ended the program that protected them so now we're looking for something new. that's what both sides want to do, protect them from deportation. they gave congress six months to replace what the president did away with. the deadline is three weeks away. the deadline is not really a hard deadline. mike emanuel is live on capitol hill. hi, mike. >> it's interesting. on the day the senate is launching this immigration push, the top two leaders of the two parties were in louisville,

kentucky sounding like they're ready to go. >> every critical moment in this country, we have come together to do what needed to be done the move the ball down the field. >> the senate democratic leader noted this will be a challenge. >> it won't be easy, but we're all going to try because of the gravity of the issues at stake. because we know that this week will be a test of whether the senate can steer the ship of state through the stormiest of waters. now, i believe it can. >> perhaps feeling more upbeat after the two were able to agree on a bipartisan deal to set spending levels the next two years. shep? >> shepard: the house is quite a different things, right? >> no question about that. the politics on the house side are quite different, a lot of conservatives are pushing for a deal by bob goodlatte which is heavy on enforcement and would allow dreamers to live and work

here. >> i say find an accommodation but no amnesty. we can't have them get in the cue above people that have been working through this for years. i know families that have spent every dollar they made, every dollar they have saved and ten years trying to get their citizenship through the legal process. >> a california democrat says her side blew it last week. >> it was a real mistake that we didn't use the leverage we had in the last spending bill. we have a couple opportunities coming up, maybe one. we need to continue to use that. congress needs to stay there until we get this done. >> the senate gets it started tonight. shep? >> shepard: all right, mike. thanks a lot. more on the immigration debate in a few minutes. speaking with a journalist who says it will be a tall order to get something done that will have the approval of the senate and the house and the president.

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ah. oh hello. that lady, these houses! yes, yes and yes. and don't forget about them. uh huh, sure. still yes! xfinity delivers gig speed to more homes than anyone. now you can get it, too. welcome to the party. >> shepard: 24 minutes past the hour now. that is that briefing room again. 3:30 now is the scheduled time. six minutes from now. we'll see. while we wait, let's get more on the immigration debate in the senate. nicholas johnson is from axios and live with us. good to see you. thanks. >> hello. how are you? >> shepard: is this going anywhere or is there really a path or is all of this just chatter? >> i think it's going to start out being just chatter. you had chuck schumer on. his read of this is right. it's going to be difficult. it won't be easy. the easy agreement is an agreement to talk about it. it will be remarkable seeing it

in the senate. all sorts of amendments and proposals being -- >> shepard: i was talking about that to someone today. if we really haven't seen it since long back before mitch mcconnell, since they started being the no people in the last administration, we haven't seen any of this. they haven't opened up regular order, full debate. it's coming, right? >> it's going to happen on this. that doesn't mean they'll get anything done. one of the times i remember last time they had full and open debate is when they did immigration in the bush administration. it's so difficult to get all of these different factions to agree to get 60 votes in the senate, to get something to pass the house with their conservative side and have the president's approval. the proposals that we're hearing about, the one that will get it doesn't exist why it. >> shepard: isn't it true what they do get out of this, if they stand up there at the podium, get read into the congressional record, whatever each individual one thinks his or her constituents want to hear and in

the end they get nothing and go i sure tried hard. >> if i was going to be a pessimistic person, that's how i see this playing out. a lot of people on both sides putting up proposals that make it difficult for the other side to vote for. a lot of votes that can be used during the mid-terms. it's a temporary things that kicks it to 2019. >> are we convinced that everybody wants an immigration solution? that all sides are being honest about that? >> how they view the solution is so different. $25 billion for border security is what trump wants. that's not what chuck schumer wants. it's difficult to see where the overlap is. 60 votes in the senate, 218 in the house and the president's signature. >> shepard: the research shows the biggest problem is in the ports of call. >> right. >> shepard: but there's not -- i haven't heard anything about what to do about that. and then the way most of them get here is -- it's weird. they buy an airline ticket and

don't go home. >> right. it's a more difficult thing to message. remember what the president ran on. the wall is a compelling message. you can run for re-election on the wall. it's much more difficult to run for election on visa overstays. look for a lot of political messages here. >> shepard: one of those is a problem and one is a message. >> that's another issue to deal with in congress. >> shepard: what is the reporting on how long we think this process plays out, this debate? >> mitch mcconnell hasn't put a deadline on it. it could go fork weeks. there's nothing pressing. the deadline for dreamers is in march. because of judicial injunction, it's not a hard deadline. the senate debating over immigration. >> shepard: while this is happening, some dreamers are being deported. >> that's true. >> shepard: good to talk to you, nicklaus. keep it up. >> shepard: more ahead on the president's budget proposal. including a plan to fix america's roads and bridges.

a plan to spur activity that might fix up the roads and bridges. could also mean a big change for part of america's space program. have you heard about this part? first a highway turning into an inferno in a split second. that's coming up in the bottom of the hour headlines which are next. bottom of the hour news coming up. stay with us.

when a man opened fire. the suspect facing murder charges. investigators have recovered the flight data recorders from a russian airline that crashed outside of moscow killing all 71 on board. that's the word from a russian

official who said the recorders could be crucial. hundreds of emergency workers have been searching the crash site. a track with liquefied natural gas turning a chinese highway into an inferno. the tanker trump overturned and caused the asphalt with a flammable li flammab flammable liquid. the news continues with shepard smith after this. ay help. entresto is a heart failure medicine that helps improve your heart's ability to pump blood to the body. in the largest heart failure study ever, entresto was proven superior at helping people stay alive and out of the hospital compared to a leading heart failure medicine. don't take entresto if pregnant. it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren.

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what is this? the budget? >> yeah. we'll get to the space stuff in just a moment. this is a $4.4 trillion spending plan. let's begin with the cuts. medicaid and medicare. $250 billion for medicaid over ten years. cuts to the food stamp program. $214 billion over ten years. the epa, this will get some tongues wagging. $208 billion in cuts. a 34% cut. by the way, virtually eliminates all climate change related programs. let's take a look at the boosts. defense spending. heard a lot about this of the $716 billion going to the mel teary. healthcare for the veterans. the opioid crisis response, $13 billion. as you mentioned there, we're talking about the restructuring this country for roads and rails

and ports and airports. the feds kick in $200 billion. it's hoped that the states and private enterprise will pick up the rest to make it $1.5 trillion. >> shepard: and pass along -- >> expect higher taxes. >> shepard: or road tolls. we always pay. >> always. bottom line. >> shepard: and we want to sell -- how does this work with the international space station? selling it to a company or -- >> that's to be determined. the trump administration wants to privatize the international space station by 2025. they say we spend $3 billion for this thing to float around in orbit. we spent up to $100 billion now. so why not let private enterprise take over? are you going to have coca-cola's international space station? wouldn't that be something? we're not sure how this will work. a lot of discussion because it's not just the united states that contributes to this. we have russia and other countries. how are they going to feel with

coca-cola on the side. >> shepard: we'll have to check with the russians. nice to see you. >> thank you. >> shepard: and we're going to tamara keith from the npr. how are you? >> good to see you. >> shepard: what is the response for this infrastructure proposal? >> the response has been polite. the same thing about the budget. the commercial committee says they will hold hearings on ideas about infrastructure next month. on the house side, the republican chairman of the transportation committee is saying that bipartisan legislation is what would be needed. they're talking. i also spoke to an aid to a democratic member of congress that met with the white house about this infrastructure plan. what they're saying is, you know, we see a few things where we can see our influence. however, $200 billion to be

leveraged to $1.5 trillion, that isn't enough is what they're saying. i think that you would get republicans saying that, too. $200 billion is a nice number. it is not enough as the president calls it to meet the infrastructure deficit. >> shepard: and then there's the budget. regarding the budget, those against it are against it for different reasons. the president campaigned on ending the face deficits in eight years. this takes it in the other direction and freedom caucus folks on the republican side are none too pleased about it. far left has their own thoughts. >> absolutely. the way i like to think about presidential budgets and the way a lot of people think about them and the way congress thinks about presidential budgets is the way you think about advice about the way you should live your life from your parents.

you say thanks, i appreciate the suggestion. the republican chair of the house pronations committee is saying we received this, we'll thank the president, look at it and analyze it as we do our own analysis about what we believe is best for our constituents. that was the republican chairman of the appropriations committee. >> shepard: so from your republicaning listening to the republicans and the democrats, sounds like neither of these things will happen. these are things the president has suggested. >> these are suggestions from the president. if something happens on infrastructure, it would be something that would more likely originate from congress. certainly they would talk to the administration. there's some appetite to do something about infrastructure, but it's not a massive appetite and just remember this is an election year where a lot won't happen. >> shepard: hard to get things done in an election year.

thanks, tamara. >> good to see you. >> shepard: mike pence says u.s. officials are willing to have talks with the north koreans, willing to have talks but the united states will continue to apply maximum pressure on the country to end its nuclear program. really what they're saying, we'll talk to you, but you have to end your nuclear program. first, fox weather alert. midway airport in chicago getting back to normal after a shortage of de-icing fluid. in chicago they're out of the de-icer. that's according to none other than the chicago tribute. the national weather service reports that the city had nine straight days of snow. it's february in chicago. adam klotz mass more. >> that's what is supposed to happen in february in chicago. that system given a break. rain stretching up and down the

east coast. that will push off. the story behind the system, it continues to be cold. that was a cold front. everything it, 29 in chicago, 25 in cleveland. the coldest air in the northern plains. temperatures down into the teens. single digits. if you add in the windchill, that's what it feels like when you step outside those feels-like temperatures are even colder. areas of north dakota getting down into the middle negative teens. getting into negative 30s in places in montana. this very cold air once again settling across the northern plains. if there's any good news on the horizon, things will be warming up the next couple days. these are tuesdays highs. wednesday, warmer air piling up in the center of the country. thursday, warmer yet. then we have more cold air for the west coast. more of shepard smith reporting coming up after the break. it's e ignores me while i drive. it's fine.

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>> shepard: the white house, they're still waiting for them. three people celebrating a birthday when the helicopter that's were riding in crashed into the grand canyon an killed them. four others were hurt including pilot. the passengers were all from the united kingdom. a witness shot this video showing a survivor trying to get away. the father of one said his daughter died with her boyfriend. they were celebrating the boyfriend's birthday. there it is. waiting for that to begin. the mike pence says the administration is open to talks with north korea but he says that pyongyang must take a step towards denuclearization. the report is that vice president pence gave the interview on his way home from south korea where he attended

the winter olympics. the vice president met south korea's president and said there's no day light between the two allies when it comes to dealing with the north. jennifer griffin has more. >> hi, shep. president trump tweeted last october that his secretary of state was "wasting your time, rex" talking to little rocketman. now it seems like there's a change in tone from the white house in the wake of vice president pence after his meeting in south korea. he told josh rogan that the u.s. would pursue "maximum pressure and engagement at the same time." he told south korea's president, if you want to talk, we'll talk following south korea's lead and meeting with kim jong-un. all of this follows the propaganda coup that north korea achieve attending the game and seating kim jong-un's sister above and behind the vice president. pence likely heard from allies

in asia that they're worried about all the military talk coming from washington. >> shepard: any reaction from the secretaries of defense or state? >> at the white house last week, defense secretary mattis said the u.s.'s approach to north korea is in the diplomatic lane with viable military options. the white house appears more in line with the secretary state and defense secretary mattis that are both allies. both know there's few military options for removing the nuclear weapons. >> it's too early to judge. as we have said for some time, it's up to the north koreans to decide when they're ready to engage with us in a sincere way, a meaningful way. they know what the has to be on the table for conversations. >> on a political level in seoul, there's no wedge that can

be driven between us by north kor korea. using the olympics to reduce tension if that will have any traction once the olympics are over, we can't say right now. >> all eyes are on the korean peninsula after march 18. that's the closing ceremony for the olympics and para olympics and when many worry things could heat up. >> shepard: that makes sense. thanks, jennifer griffin. minutes away from the closing bell. 13 minutes on wall street. a minute ago, we were up 500 points. now it's 400. if you close your eyes, take a quick commercial break, could be up five, down three. nobody knows. stocks on the rise after a wild week. now there's word we could see more major swings in the near future. we'll tell you why ahead. bibs on people! lobsterfest is back at red lobster... with the most lobster dishes of the year. new dueling lobster tails has two tails

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>> shepard: the briefing has begun. just missed a few seconds. sarah sanders talking about the infrastructure program. let's listen. >> growing the american economy, ending waste. we look forward to working closely with congress to achieve these priorities and ensure the safety of the united states for generations to come. omb director mick mulvaney will be answering questions on the budgeting following the briefing. i encourage you to stick around for them and save your budget questions for them. i'd like to add a quick congratulations to the u.s. olympic team which is off to a great start. we look forward to jamie and anderson and red gerard bringing their gold medals home. >> rob porter's wife spoke with

the fbi in january. she says that she laid out all of the allegations that have since been aired against rob porter and provided the fbi with the photographs that were the turning point in this termination last week. at any time between january 25 of last year and last wednesday did the fbi make any one here at the white house, did the fbi make anybody here aware of the allegations that had been raised about porter by colby holderness? >> we learned of the extent involving rob porter last tuesday evening. within 24 hours, his resignation had been a -- accepted and announced. the president takes domestic violence very seriously and believes allegations need to be

investigated thoroughly. the president supports victims of domestic violence. we've addressed this extensively and we have nothing more to add at this time. >> the allegations raised against him would make him a prime candidate for blackmail, which would lead to any responsible person at the fbi to come to the white house and say, i want to let you know, this person will likely never get a permanent security clearance. was that concern ever raised to anyone here at the white house? >> as i know raj addressed last week, we let the process play out. it was ongoing. hadn't been completed. beyond that in a statement i gave you, i don't have anything else to add. >> why haven't we heard the president said what you just said right there? that he takes domestic violence very seriously? >> i speak with the president. those are directly his words that he gave me. >> why hasn't he said that? >> it's my job to speak on behalf of the president. i spoke to him. he relayed that message to me

and i'm relaying it to you. >> does he believe rob porter's accusers or does he believe they're lying? >> the president and his administration take domestic violence very seriously and believe all allegations need to be thoroughly investigated and above all, the president supports the victims of domestic violence and believes everyone should be treated fairly and with due process. >> that doesn't answer the question. >> as i just said, i'm not going to go beyond that. that's where we are right now. >> does the president still believe that rob porter wants him to have a great career ahead of him? >> i think the president of the president -- united states hopes that all americans can be successful in what they do. if they've had any issues in the past, i'm not confirming or denying, the president wants success for all americans. he was elected to serve all americans and hopes for the

best. jim? >> what about the president's tweet over the weekend, people's lives are being shattered and destroyed by allegations. it seems like the president was believing mr. porter as opposed to his alleged victims. why did the president tweet that over the weekend, why is he seemingly defending mr. porter publicly? is because he faced his own allegations? is there sensitivity there? >> i just said and i'll repeat it again, the president and the entire administration take domestic violence very seriously and believe all allegations need to be investigated thoroughly. he certainly supports the victims above all else and believes that everyone should be treated fairly and with due process. the president is saying that there should be a due process that should be followed and looked at. >> there's a tone deafness there. being on the wrong side of things. >> i don't think the president

being on -- supporting due process for any allegation is not tone deaf. i think it's allowing things to be investigated and a mere allegation not be the determining factor. not taking aside necessarily one way or the other on any specific issue here. he's talking about mere allegations shouldn't be the determining factor for any individual, that there should be due process. anybody here if they were accused of something -- hold on. i'm not finished. hold on. what i'm saying is i think anybody here if they were accused of something would want the opportunity to goed through due process. that's all we're saying. >> the vice president said he was appalled by the allegations. why does the president have to speak through you? >> the president has been clear multiple times through myself and others within the administration that we condemned

domestic violence in all forms. >> he's not said it. why has he not said it? >> i'm the spokesperson for the president -- >> why didn't the president say it? >> i'm not sure how i can be any more clear. the president has ex-spoused his views on this. >> he wishes porter well and that he believes that people should have due process. he hadn't addressed the victims of domestic violence at all. >> actually not true. if you paid attention to what i just read to you, you would understand the opposite. he literally dictated that statement to me. so i'm not really sure how that is not the president speaking on that topic. >> does the white house have a rule in policy regarding how long employees operate on minimum security clearance? >> we're not going to get into the details of how the process works.

last week we went further than we ever have due to extenuating circumstances. there's nothing further to add. this is a process that doesn't operate within the white house. it's handled by our law enforcement and intelligence community. we support that process. it's the same process that's been used for decades in previous administrations and we're relying on that process. it's up to the same intelligence agencies to determine if changes need to be made to their process. >> if i may -- >> follow on that can you say whether the white house is beginning to examine or review cases of staffers who are operating under interim clearance or -- >> i can't weigh-in -- i'm not going to get into the details of the process. i can tell you we rely on the same process that's been used

for decades. if changes are thought to be made, that would be made by the law enforcement and intel communities that run that process, not the white house. that is something that could be looked at certainly in light of this. >> you have any more information for us on -- how was the president informed of what happened -- >> i know the president spoke with her. beyond that at this point, it's an ongoing and active investigation. i can't comment any further. i can say the president has spoken with her in the last hour. >> sarah, i want to go back to the point that the president has accused men of sexual harassment and including mike tyson, steve win, corey lewandowski, roy moore. would the white house say that the president believes women making these accusations? >> i think the president, like i said above everything else,

supports the victims of any type of domestic violence. the president also supporting due process. i don't have anything else further to add. >> i want to get back to the time line. intercept reporter tweeted out photos of holderness' black eye and they were published 8:30 wednesday morning. 12 hours after the photos were published and out they were released. why was the white how saying that porter was a man of integrity and honor after the photos had circulated? >> the comments made by members of the white house were based on our personal experience and we can only speak to the interaction we had. >> why are high level aides allowed to work with classified information without permanent security clearance? >> that's a question that the fbi and other intelligence