Scaramucci fired by Trump for 'inappropriate' comments

Donald Trump has sacked Anthony Scaramucci, the White House communications director, ten days after his appointment.

The US President took the decision "at the urging of new White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly", says the Washington Post, which calls it "a clear sign" that Kelly is "being empowered to manage what has been an unwieldy West Wing operation".

Scaramucci hit the headlines last week after attacking several senior White House officials and saying he planned to "fire them all".

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Reince Priebus, then chief of staff, "left shortly after the rant in which Mr. Scaramucci accused him of undermining the President through leaks of information to reporters", the New York Times reports.

Scaramucci reserved his most vivid critique for Trump's director of strategy, telling the New Yorker: "I'm not Steve Bannon. I'm not trying to suck my own c**k… I'm not trying to build my own brand off the f*****g strength of the President."

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said last night: "The President certainly felt Anthony's comments were inappropriate for a person in that position."

Scaramucci's "unusually short tenure" comes at "a moment of extreme turbulence in the White House", says the Los Angeles Times, adding that Trump's senior team has been "embroiled in infighting as it confronts low poll numbers for the President, a floundering legislative agenda and the investigations involving Russian meddling in last year's presidential election".

However, other White House media chiefs have had shorter times in office.

John O Koehler, chief communicator for Ronald Reagan in March 1987, lasted less than a week after it was revealed "he had been a member of a Nazi youth group when he was 10", the Washington Post reports.