White House aide lasts 10 days
Scaramucci steps down as new chief of staff takes helm
Hours after President Trump swore in a new chief of staff, the White House announced that Anthony Scaramucci, the hard-charging and controversial communication director, would step down.
The announcement came a week and a half after the man known as “The Mooch” was hired.
“Mr. Scaramucci felt it was best to give Chief of Staff John Kelly a clean slate and the ability to build his own team,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said. “We wish him all the best.”
Scaramucci’s sudden departure came the same day Kelly, a retired general, took over as chief of staff.
Until this week, Kelly was Trump’s secretary of Homeland Security. A former combat leader, he is expected to impose discipline in a White House rocked by weeks of staff shake-ups and political missteps.
Kelly, who replaced Reince Priebus, insisted on full control of the staff when he took the job, while Scaramucci made clear he would report only to Trump, administration officials said under condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters. The two agreed their relationship would not work.
Scaramucci, a Wall Street financier, was tapped July 21 to lead the White House communication shop.
It’s unclear who will replace him, leaving the press office in flux as Trump disputes any reports of “chaos” at the White House.
Upon taking the job, Scaramucci faced criticism for a lack of communication experience and a brash style that rubbed some West Wing colleagues the wrong way.
Immediately after his hiring, Scaramucci loudly launched investigations of news leaks stemming from the Trump administration — and he vowed to fire anyone caught talking out of school to the media.
Scaramucci’s departure came days after a report of his graphic and profane comments about Priebus and other staffers, such as senior adviser Steve Bannon. In an infamous phone call last week to The New Yorker, Scaramucci called Priebus a “paranoid schizophrenic” and threatened to fire the entire White House communication team.
After the interview was published, Scaramucci took to Twitter to apologize for using “colorful” language on the job.
Scaramucci’s hire led to the immediate resignation of White House spokesman Sean Spicer, who opposed his appointment, and later the removal of Priebus, whose departure was announced late Friday.
Scaramucci himself removed White House senior assistant spokesman Michael Short, a former Republican National Committee official who worked with the Trump campaign and was brought into the White House by Priebus.
Sanders said there are no plans to reinstall Scaramucci to his previous job at the Export-Import Bank.
Before his White House stint, Scaramucci spent years on Wall Street, including at Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers.
In 2005, he started a global investment firm, SkyBridge Capital.
His removal as communication chief stunned Republicans already critical of what they described as White House turmoil.
Florida-based Republican consultant and Trump critic Rick Wilson tweeted, “It’s not a dumpster fire. It’s a mountain of dumpsters, filled with burning tires.”
Before Scaramucci’s departure, Trump had a rosy outlook Monday, insisting Kelly would do a “spectacular” job and touting the support of his base.
“We’re doing very well. We have a tremendous base. We have a tremendous group of support. The country is optimistic,” Trump said while swearing in Kelly on Monday. “And I think the general would just add to it.”
Whoever comes in as the next communication director is likely to face an array of challenges — unifying the White House around a consistent message and communicating that message with reporters who have a sometimes tense relationship with a president who dubs many major media outlets “fake news.”
The departure of Priebus and Scaramucci comes after a tumultuous week for the Trump White House.
The president for days belittled his own attorney general, Jeff Sessions, raising questions about whether Trump wanted him to quit so he could get rid of special counsel Robert Mueller and assert greater control over the Russia investigation.
In addition, Trump’s son-inlaw Jared Kushner appeared before a House panel investigating possible collusion between Trump associates and Russia.
Although Trump has demanded Republicans repeal and replace Obamacare, attempts to do so in the Senate last week fell short despite a GOP majority — prompting Trump to call lawmakers from his own party “fools” over the weekend.
Scaramucci did not get good reviews during his brief tenure, and some analysts felt his departure would indeed bode well for the Trump White House — as well as Kelly’s prospects as the new chief of staff.
“Anthony Scaramucci had absolutely no business being hired as White House communications director, and he quickly showed he was ill-suited not just for that particular job, but for any senior White House role,” Texas-based political consultant Matt Mackowiak said.
“This is a clear sign that General Kelly is empowered and fully in charge, focused on getting the senior staff all on the same page, acting as a cohesive team. This is a very good sign.”
Daniel Drezner, a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, said Kelly obviously had the authority to fire Scaramucci, and that has two positive effects.
“First, it gets rid of the most undisciplined staffer in an undisciplined administration,” Drezner said. “Second, it signals that Kelly, a no-nonsense guy, can fire people, which might deter other White House staffers into laying low for a spell.”