President Donald Trump on Friday offered his best wishes to Rob Porter, the top White House aide who resigned Wednesday after two of his ex-wives came forward with domestic abuse allegations. The president also emphasized that Porter has denied the accusations.

“We wish him well, he worked very hard,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I found out about it recently and I was surprised by it. But we certainly wish him well. It’s an obviously tough time for him. He did a very good job while he was in the White House, and we hope that he has a wonderful career.”

“Now he also, as you probably know, he says that he’s innocent. I think you have to remember that,” Trump added. “He said very strongly yesterday that’s he’s innocent.”

Trump’s comments marked the first time the president has publicly addressed the growing scandal, which emerged this week after news outlets reported on the abuse allegations and published photos of one of his former wives with a black eye. White House chief of staff John Kelly has been under intense fire for reportedly knowing about the allegations for months.