But it was in keeping with the White House’s initially defensive reaction to the charges against Mr. Porter — a messy trail of conflicting statements that has left the West Wing in turmoil, with angry officials pointing fingers at one another.

The White House chief of staff, John F. Kelly, and the press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, staunchly defended Mr. Porter initially. Ms. Sanders said the president had “full confidence” in his performance, while Mr. Kelly described him as “a man of true integrity and honor.”

Yet the allegations against Mr. Porter and Mr. Sorensen were longstanding, well documented, and at least in Mr. Porter’s case, known to the White House for months, even as he held one of the West Wing’s most sensitive positions, channeling paperwork to the president.

One of Mr. Porter’s former wives, Jennifer Willoughby, obtained a restraining order against him, while the other, Colbie Holderness, presented a photograph of herself with a black eye, which she said came from being hit by Mr. Porter while the couple was on vacation in Italy.

The F.B.I. informed the White House of these charges, which held up Mr. Porter’s application for a permanent security clearance. Mr. Kelly has told his staff he ordered Mr. Porter to be fired 40 minutes after learning of the charges, an assertion that other officials disputed.

In the case of Mr. Sorensen, his former wife, Jessica Corbett, told F.B.I. agents conducting a background check on her husband that he had run over her foot while driving a car and extinguished a cigarette on her hand during a turbulent two-and-a-half-year marriage.

For his part, Mr. Trump generously praised Mr. Porter, telling reporters on Friday, “He did a very good job when he was in the White House, and we wish him well.” The president made no mention of the women Mr. Porter is said to have abused — a point several of the president’s critics noted.