Accusations of abuse against former Representative Katie Porter have been resurfaced by Republicans after Porter’s threat to leave an interview with a Los Angeles television news station went viral on social media.
Newsweek reached out to Porter’s gubernatorial campaign for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Porter, a Democrat, is running in the open race to succeed Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom to lead California—the most populous state in the nation and home to one of the largest economies in the world. Backlash over the interview comes as she is working to consolidate Democratic support in the critical election ahead of next year’s primaries.
Katie Porter Interview: What We Know
Porter sat down for an interview with CBS News California Investigates correspondent Julie Watts. Watts asked Porter about Proposition 50, a redistricting ballot measure that would temporarily replace the state’s Congressional maps, drawn by an independent commission, with a map more favorable to Democrats, in response to Texas redrawing its map to become more Republican.
Porter was asked, “What do you say to the 40 percent of California voters, who you’ll need in order to win, who voted for [President Donald] Trump?”
Porter said she does not believe she would need them to win, as California is a solidly Democratic state, and that she has won Republican voters before during her House races, when she represented a competitive Orange County district. Porter said the interview was becoming “unnecessarily argumentative” and called off the interview.
“I don’t want to keep doing this, I’m going to call it,” she said, adding that she did not want to do an interview with “seven follow-ups to every single question you ask.”
CBS reported that she stayed and continued answering questions.
The video had gone viral on X, where some users, including prominent Republicans, resurfaced allegations of abuse against Porter.
Those include allegations made during her divorce with ex-husband Matthew Hoffman, such as him accusing her of dumping boiling potatoes on his head. Porter has denied those accusations and filed a restraining order against Hoffman, accusing him of abuse as well.
Her spokesperson, Lindsay Reilly, previously denied the report to Fox News Digital, saying that on “the morning of the hearing on Porter’s request for a temporary restraining order following documented violence by her then-husband, her then-husband’s lawyer filed a reciprocal request for protection.”
“This common defensive tactic is designed to intimidate a victim,” Reilly told the news outlet. “Her then-husband later admitted, as evidenced by the attached document, that ‘he regretted making these allegations.’”
Those allegations have resurfaced following the interview debacle.
“CONFIRMED: Katie Porter has an anger problem,” wrote conservative commentator Steve Guest, who shared a headline from a New York Post article detailing the allegations. Similar posts spread across social media on Wednesday.
California Elections: Who’s Running for Governor?
The race has drawn several Democratic and Republican candidates, though Democrats will likely be favored due to the state’s persistent Democratic lean. Porter has led public polling of the race, though recent surveys suggest many voters remain undecided. Notably, former Vice President Kamala Harris has said she will not be running.
Candidates on the Democratic side include former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former Comptroller Betty Yee.
Republican candidates include Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and political commentator Steve Hilton.
What People Are Saying
Republican commentator Matt Whitlock wrote on X: “This Katie Porter crashout is INCREDIBLE. Easy to imagine her pouring boiling mashed potatoes on her husband’s head.”
Journalist Yashar Ali wrote on X: ”Someone who used to work with Katie Porter sent me this clip from a train-wreck interview with her and said, ‘Now imagine what she’s like when there aren’t cameras around.’”
Xavier Becerra, former Health and Human Services secretary to President Joe Biden, who is also running for governor: “I’m not interested in excluding any vote. Every Californian deserves affordable health care, safe streets, a roof over their head and a living wage.”
Analyst Nate Silver wrote on X: “TV is a really unnatural medium especially in a studio setting like this. Of course you’re supposed to stay more on script if you’re running for office but it’s a very human reaction.” n
What Happens Next
Candidates in California will continue to spend the coming months making their cases to voters. Whether or not the interview will have any effect on Porter’s chances of winning the race remains to be seen.
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