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Per the Times, it was John Kelly who was the driving force behind this decision. Today’s his first day as chief of staff and undoubtedly he wanted to do something dramatic to set a new tone of decorum, discipline, and authority in the West Wing. Obvious first move: Cancel the Scaramucci clown show before it really gets going.
Tough call for Trump. Reportedly he “loved” Mooch’s insane New Yorker interview. But if he declined Kelly’s very first personnel request as chief, the Kelly era would be off to a horrible start. So, bye, Mooch.
President Trump has decided to remove Anthony Scaramucci from his position as communications director, three people close to the decision said Monday, relieving him just days after Mr. Scaramucci unloaded a crude verbal tirade against other senior members of the president’s senior staff…
The decision to remove Mr. Scaramucci, who had boasted about reporting directly to the president not the chief of staff, John F. Kelly, came at Mr. Kelly’s request, the people said. Mr. Kelly made clear to members of the White House staff at a meeting Monday morning that he is in charge.
It was not clear whether Mr. Scaramucci will remain employed at the White House in another position or will leave altogether.
So, 11 days: Trump bring in Scaramucci, Spicer resigns, Priebus is forced out a few days later and replaced by Kelly, and then … Scaramucci is forced out. As the president once said, his White House runs like a fine-tuned machine.
Stand by for updates.
Update: Usually sitcom writers keep a gimmicky new character around for longer than one or two episodes.
A statement by the Mooch: pic.twitter.com/ag18N6nuGf
— Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) July 31, 2017
Update: I wonder if the Post’s stories about Scaramucci’s messy divorce helped convince Kelly and Trump to get rid of him sooner rather than later, before it gets even messier. And relatedly, I wonder who fed those stories to the Post hoping to take him out. His wife? Team Reince? Someone else?
Will Kelly replace Reince as the new subject of Mooch’s vendetta?
Update: Trump tweeted literally hours ago that there was “no White House chaos.”
Good question from Guy Benson: Will Spicer stay now? Remember, his resignation doesn’t take effect until next month.
Update: This is trolling, right? President “Access Hollywood” isn’t worried about vulgarity.
sources also say POTUS & fam did not appreciate how A.S. comments linked them to vulgarity. Like to play rough but not be laughed at/embrsd
— Robert Costa (@costareports) July 31, 2017
Update: Just as Spicer and Priebus were blindsided, so apparently was the Mooch:
MSNBC's @SRuhle just now: she spoke to Anthony Scaramucci last night and he had no idea this was coming…
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) July 31, 2017
Update: A terse, unconvincing statement from the White House:
White House statement on @Scaramucci's departure. pic.twitter.com/R5kicfSYNm
— Joe Weisenthal (@TheStalwart) July 31, 2017
He’ll land on his feet when he replaces Sessions as Attorney General.
Update: Did Mooch go quietly or not so much? He’s spent the past year trying to ingratiate himself to Trump in hopes of landing an administration job, and in the end he lasted 11 days. He must be enraged.
https://twitter.com/JaxAlemany/status/892100779741499392
Update: It was only 11 days but Scaramucci still managed to prove himself terrible at his job:
“They have a decent story to tell on these economic things, which is what Trump’s campaign was about and what Anthony’s background is. But instead we’re talking about his feelings about Reince and Steve Bannon and his North Korea-esque praise of Donald Trump,” Tim Miller, a veteran Republican operative and communications director for former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s presidential campaign, told The Daily Beast on Friday. “Maybe they don’t want to talk about health care and jobs. Maybe they just want to be talked about. And in that sense [Scaramucci] is doing a good job. Everyone wants to take selfies with him.”…
Republican sources told The Daily Beast this week that Scaramucci has a weak grasp on basic public-relations practices and journalism terminology, including forgetting to request that sensitive conversations be kept off the record. For some in the Trump administration, The New Yorker debacle raises the specter that a political neophyte has been placed in one of the office’s most consequential posts…
One senior White House official, when asked about the now-infamous interview quotes, would only reply: “amateur amateur amateur.”
Update: This feels a little too dramatic even for the Trump White House, but for what it’s worth:
A source says @Scaramucci said I don't report to you and the General said your gone and he is
— AprilDRyan (@AprilDRyan) July 31, 2017
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