It's Time for John Kelly to Apologize

With video evidence on her side, the Washington Post editorial board argues it's time for John Kelly to apologize to Rep. Frederica Wilson after characterizing her as "selfish and politically motivated" during a press briefing Thursday at the White House. The chief of staff took issue with Wilson's criticism of President Trump over his interactions with the widow of a US soldier killed in Niger. To back up his assessment of Wilson, Kelly recalled the 2015 dedication of an FBI building in Florida to two FBI agents killed in the line of duty. He said Wilson "used the occasion to take unseemly credit for securing federal funding for the building," adding that he was "stunned" by the behavior, even coming from as "empty a barrel" as Wilson.

But video of Wilson's speech in 2015 shows nothing of the sort. She never boasted of getting funding for the building, instead speaking highly of the FBI agents and being "generous and graceful in sharing credit for how legislation naming the building was fast-tracked," the Post editorial board notes. "It is unfortunate that the sacrifice of brave people such as these two agents or the four soldiers killed in Niger can get overwhelmed by the petty name-calling of politics," the board writes. "That is a point Mr. Kelly was trying to make Thursday, and that he undercut with his misrepresentation of Ms. Wilson." The board states "the only conclusion that can be drawn" from the video evidence is that Kelly must apologize. Read the full opinion piece here. (More John Kelly stories.)