'The Mooch' goes to Washington

Many White House administrations, when they hit the inevitable road block in getting things done, blame it on the lack of a strong communications strategy. This White House is no exception.

Friday’s shakeup of the communications department, spurred by Press Secretary Sean Spicer’s unexpected (at that moment anyway) resignation, is aimed at getting better spokesmen on TV for President Trump. He hit the jackpot in Anthony “The Mooch” Scaramucci. He’s perfect for Trump. Personally,  I think he’s a putz.

Scaramucci’s debut at the Brady Briefing Room’s podium was classic Scaramucci and Trump. The new communications director declared his “love” for Trump multiple times, said Trump had “great karma” and he blew a kiss to the press on his way off the podium, call that the Mooch Smooch.

Scaramucci took the podium with an audience of one in mind -- Donald Trump.

He only cared what Trump heard, not what the citizenry heard.  Something the Trump folks can’t seem grasp is that while of course their job is to try to make Trump look good their responsibility also is to tell the American people the truth.

The newest White House staff member in his first 72 hours on the job:

• Told CNN”s Jake Tapper that he received a call from someone he wouldn’t name who was making the case that it might have been Russia who meddled with our election last year or it might have been others. Tapper “pressed” – he asked once who it was for it for the statement to have credibility – and Scaramucci quickly caved under that pressure admitting it was Trump himself. Another Trump spokesman who likes to make it sound like the world agrees with Trump.
• Said he will fire any leakers he finds in the Communications Department. Fabulous. But as most former White House staffers – from both parties – will tell you, those people seldom leak. The leaks typically come from national security or foreign policy staffers (not always in the White House), career employees and others. Scaramucci can talk tough but likely he won’t fire anybody who’s a leaker. And if he does fire someone, that someone will be merely a scapegoat for proof that he's one tough New Yawker.
• Told anyone who’d listen that in a full act of transparency, he was deleting all his old Tweets. Uh, those tweets primarily were Tweets attacking Trump (because Scarmuicci opposed him before he supported him, going through at least two other presidential primary contenders before landing on Trump when no one else was left).
• Called Trump a “political hack” on Fox TV. Of course he said he and Trump joke about that now.
• Said he was deleting the Tweets because he’s “evolved” in his thinking. It reminded me of a street bum who approached friends and me 40 years ago in New York City and said, “I’m a walking talking lunatic.”

My view: Scaramucci is what, in political terminology,  I’d call a putz: A phony, slick-talking, fancy pants who is the stereotype of a used car salesman. He’s that guy you went to school with who sucked up to the teachers only to make fun of them when they were out of ear shot. He succeeded in many areas, but we hated him for it because we knew he was, well, a putz.

My guess is he will be successful with Mr. Trump…until he isn’t. When the President sees that Scaramucci is not solving the President’s problems – and he won’t because his problems aren’t communications -- he will fall out of favor just as has Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Trump threw Sessions – his very first Senate supporter and the one who took a big risk endorsing Trump so early – under the bus, and then had a few pickups run over him for good measure last week in an inane interview Trump gave to the New York Times.

Sessions’ mistake? He was faithful to the Constitution first rather than Trump first. Bad boy!

Trump will take Scaramucci over Sessions any day because The Mooch will say whatever makes Trump smile. He is mini-me in younger packaging.

And we get a new, improved putz in the Administration.