Top Democratic congressman trolls Scaramucci over his short-lived White House stint


White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci was dismissed from his post Monday, reportedly at the behest of newly minted Chief of Staff John Kelly. Scaramucci joined the White House just 10 days ago, and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) made sure to note the illustriously short timeline in his "thank you" tweet to Scaramucci:
Schiff is the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee and has emerged as a steady foil to President Trump and his agenda by virtue of his involvement in the ongoing Russia investigation. But beyond needling the opposition, Schiff may have a point.
Scaramucci brought a healthy dose of color to Pennsylvania Avenue in a short amount of time: Shortly after Trump offered Scaramucci the job, Sean Spicer resigned as press secretary. Scaramucci then proceeded to fire an assistant press secretary through a Politico interview, decry the information he told Politico on the record as a "leak," and vow to "kill all the leakers." He then — on the record, of course, in a phone call with The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza — described chief strategist Stephen Bannon as a man interested in auto-fellatio and referred to former Chief of Staff Reince Priebus as a "f--king paranoid schizophrenic" just hours before Priebus was fired via tweet.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The White House's official statement on Scaramucci's ouster claims Scaramucci felt it would be best to give Kelly "a clean slate" as he takes over as chief of staff. Can't imagine why.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein files
Speed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline
-
'America is becoming a nation of homebodies'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein files
Speed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline
-
India rejects Trump threat over Russian oil
Speed Read The president said he would raise tariffs on India for buying and selling Russian oil
-
NY's Hochul vows response to Texas gerrymander
Speed Read Gov. Kathy Hochul has promised to play ball with redistricting that favors the Democrats
-
Texas Democrats exit state to block redistricting vote
Speed Read More than 51 legislators fled the state in protest of the GOP's plan to redraw congressional districts
-
Trump criticized for firing BLS chief after jobs report
Speed Read Bureau of Labor Statistics chief Erika McEntarfer oversaw a July jobs report that the president claims was rigged
-
Trump revives K-12 Presidential Fitness Test
Speed Read The Obama administration phased the test out in 2012, replacing it with a program focused on overall health rather than standardized benchmarks
-
El Salvador scraps term limits, boosting Nayib Bukele
Speed Read New constitutional changes will allow presidents to seek reelection an indefinite number of times
-
Trump assigns tariffs, delays all except on Canada
Speed Read A 35% tariff on many Canadian goods has gone into effect