MOOCH ADO ON LEAKS
'Amnesty' for past offences, but they stop now- or else
if the leaks don't stop, I'm going to pare down the staff because it's just not right. - Anthony Scaramucci White House communications director
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The new White House communications director is pledging “dramatic action” to clamp down on the steady stream of leaks that have been getting under President Trump’s skin.
“If we don’t get the leaks stopped, I am a business person, and so I will take dramatic action to stop those leaks,” Anthony Scaramucci told “Fox News Sunday.”
Appointed Friday, Scaramucci said all current staffers will have “amnesty” for past unauthorized tips to the media. Going forward, their jobs are dependent on staying quiet about any internal White House turmoil or private dealings.
“If the leaks don’t stop, I’m going to pare down the staff because it’s just not right,” he said. “It’s not fair to the president. It’s actually not fair to America or the people in the government.”
Now-former Press Secretary Sean Spicer quit following Scaramucci’s hiring and was replaced by Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
“Everybody in that team can stay as long as they follow the protocol of not leaking,” Scaramucci added. “Because at the end of the day, the president’s super upset about the leaks; it’s unprofessional.”
The New York financier and cable-news fixture says he wants to build up good will with the press and reset relations that have been strained since Spicer’s first day at the podium, when Spicer railed against the media for stories about the size of the crowd at Trump’s inauguration.
“I’m hoping to create an era of a new good feeling, of good media, give everybody a fresh start,” Scaramucci said. “Let’s see if we can reset this and create a more positive mojo among everybody.”
He added that he’ll fight to stop the spread of “fake news” in the media, another Trump fixation.
“There is some fake news, unfortunately,” he said. “And so, what I would like to say, and what I would like to believe, there is still a level of objectivity in the mainstream media, but unfortunately, there are specific individuals that do stretch stories or do fabricate things.”
The goal of the White House will be to elevate Trump’s message and to encourage him to speak more directly to the American people, Scaramucci said.
“Listen, there’s obviously a communications problem, because there’s a lot of things that we have done as it relates to executive orders, bills that have been signed, economic progress,” Scaramucci told CNN’s “State of the Union.”
And he told Fox News, “I want the president to be the president, and I want him to express the full nature of his personality. I’m not going to want to stop him or be able to stop him.”
Trump’s tweet storms, bashing of opponents and dissing members of his own Cabinet in press interviews have sometimes taken the White House off message.
But Scaramucci said he wants to enhance the ways Trump speaks directly to the people.
“He’s one of the most effective communicators that has ever been born,” Scaramucci said of the president. “And so we’re going to make sure to get that message out directly to the American people.”
While speaking to CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Scaramucci was convinced of his boss’ future success.
“I don’t know if he’s going to get what he wants next week, but he’s going to get what he wants eventually, because this guy always gets what he wants,” he said.
Scaramucci also made a direct appeal to Trump while speaking on CNN, showing his enthusiasm in pushing the administration’s agenda.
“I’m going to be working for you, and I’m going to serve the American people,” he said. “And we’re going to get your agenda out into the heartland, where it belongs.”
CNN’s Jake Tapper responded, “I love how you’re talking to one specific viewer right now.”