| | | | 5 things I think I know about the post-Sean Spicer White House | | The rumors, which started within weeks of his first appearance behind the podium, came true on Friday: Sean Spicer resigned as White House press secretary.
His resignation was apparently triggered by the decision by President Trump to appoint a longtime friend -- Anthony Scaramucci -- as communications director. Spicer has been unofficially filling that position since the resignation of Mike Dubke in late May.
So. Six months and one day into the Trump presidency, we have a clear shift in direction -- from Scaramucci's appointment to the shifts in the President's legal team to his newly-aggressive stance toward special counsel head Bob Mueller.
Here are five things I think I know about where the White House is headed.
1. "Let Donald be Donald:" Scaramucci made clear that allowing Trump to unapologetically be himself would be a goal of his. "I think it is very important for us to let him express his personality," Scaramucci told reporters. (I'm not totally sure what these last six months have been, then, but I digress.)
2. Press friendlier: Scaramucci is a guy, unlike Spicer, who enjoys banter with the press. My guess -- although he wouldn't commit to it on Friday -- is that Scaramucci tries to offer up Spicer's departure as a chance for a reset between the White House and the press corps. In the early days of Scaramucci's tenure, I think you will see a warming of relations. But, Trump is Trump, so....
3. Speculation about staff changes will continue: No matter how happy a face the White House tries to put on today, it seems pretty clear from all of the reporting around the shakeup that Spicer, White House chief of staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Steve Bannon were less than thrilled about the move. Given Trump's tendency to play favorites -- and to freeze out those who have fallen out of favor -- Spicer's departure may not be the last one this summer.
4. The family rises: Scaramucci was a "family" pick. The President likes him, as do Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner. And, as almost always in Trumpworld, the family won out. As Trump hunkers down for the special counsel battle to come, he is turning to the people he really trusts -- family members and a small few others -- to help him run the gauntlet.
5. Aggro: Trump's natural state is aggressive. He likes to be in the mix throwing punches. Restraint isn't now and hasn't ever been a strength. His moves this week all speak to an attempt by the President to reassert his will over a presidency that is, to be kind, flagging. Trump will, at least for the foreseeable future, do exactly what he wants without nearly as much staff resistance. And what he wants is to find an enemy (Mueller) and start to work to destroy him.
-- Chris | | | Sean Spicer may be gone (from the White House communications team), but he certainly will not be forgotten. Here's Saba's look at the top five infamous Spicer remarks from the last six months that generated buzz, backlash or both.
1. On inauguration turnout: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period." 2. On allegations of Trump campaign ties to Russia: "If the President put Russian salad dressing on his salad tonight, somehow that's a Russia connection." 3. When asked about Russia's potential complicity in the Syrian chemical attack in April: "You had someone who was as despicable as Hitler who didn't even sink to using chemical weapons," he said. "So you have to, if you are Russia, ask yourself is this a country that you and a regime that you want to align yourself with." 4. When trying to explain Trump's "covfefe" tweet: "The President and a small group of people know exactly what he meant." 5. When pressed about Trump's tweet about taping his conversations with then-FBI Director James Comey: "The tweet speaks for itself, I'm moving on." | | MEET THE PRESS (SECRETARIES) | | Only five press secretaries have served for less time than Spicer. CNN's Ryan Struyk has more:
Nearly all White House press secretaries have served for at least one year. The average term since 1929 is just short of three years on the job.
Three of the five press secretaries with shorter terms than Spicer came in the final days of an administration. Jake Siewert finished up the last few months of Bill Clinton's presidency, Roger Tubby finished the lame-duck period for Harry Truman and Jonathan Daniels covered the last few weeks of Franklin Roosevelt's time in office before FDR's death.
The other two short terms came in particularly extraordinary times. Jerald terHorst became press secretary in the wake of Richard Nixon's resignation, serving for the first month of Gerald Ford's presidency. James Brady, after whom the current White House briefing room is named, was shot during an assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan. (Brady technically maintained the press secretary title for the rest of the Reagan administration, but did not act in the role after the shooting.)
Check out Ryan's full story here. | | CNN's Eric Bradner reports: The Republican National Committee is bringing back Katie Walsh, a former Trump White House aide and adviser to a pro-Trump outside group, to oversee its data and digital efforts. Walsh was White House deputy chief of staff until late March. She departed to join America First Policies, a nonprofit group launched to support Trump's policies. She is now leaving the group to return to the RNC -- where Walsh was chief of staff during the 2016 election cycle -- as part of a broader overhaul of its data team, RNC spokesman Ryan Mahoney said. The RNC has also tapped Ellen Bredenkoetter as its new chief data officer. Bredenkoetter is an alum of Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's short-lived 2016 bid and Data Trust, the RNC's data firm. The move became public Friday just as White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer resigned -- spurred by Trump's hiring of Anthony Scaramucci as communications director. Mahoney stressed that the two moves are not connected. | |  | | The Mooch (aka Anthony Scaramucci) blew an air kiss to the White House press corps as he finished making his first remarks as White House communications director. | | THIS SOUNDS LIKE A BAD IDEA | | | Roll Call pointed out Friday that there's a casting call for a new reality show about working on the Hill. The job posting reads: Description: The Executive Producer behind Catfish, 30 Days, 9 By Design & Architecture School is casting a new reality show and looking for congressional staffers and DC influencers. Democrats and Republicans are welcome as long as applicants have a strong point of view and aren't afraid to express it. There will be filming of a short reel on July 24-26 so applicants must be in the DC area and somewhat available on those dates. Oh boy. | | WEST WING READS: AN ANALYSIS | | The White House launched its "West Wing Reads" newsletter last month to give the public insight into "the top news stories the West Wing is reading." CNN's Liz Stark did a deep data dive into the White House''s reading list:
Since June 19, the most frequently cited publication is the Wall Street Journal, with 13 mentions, followed by The Hill and The Washington Times, both with 11, and National Review and Washington Examiner, both with nine.
The Washington Examiner's "Washington Secrets" columnist Paul Bedard is the most popular author, with six articles featured over the past month.
Of the approximately 128 pieces featured in total, 55 of them were news reports, along with at least 57 editorial or opinion pieces written by columnists and featured contributors. 11 of those editorials were op-eds from members of the Trump administration, such as Attorney General Jeff Sessions and OMB Director Mick Mulvaney.
Additionally, there were 16 editorials from outlets' Editorial Boards, such as the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and New York Post.
The "failing" New York Times was cited three times, The Washington Post three times, and CNN once.
"West Wing Reads" also promoted a handful of smaller outlets and local publications, including The Kansas City Star, New Hampshire Union Leader, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and Philadelphia Inquirer, as well as a special "Made in America Week" edition with media from all fifty states.
Here's the breakdown of some of the outlets:
Bloomberg: 5
Boston Globe: 1
Breitbart: 2
CNBC: 2
CNN: 1
Forbes: 2
Fox News: 6
Fox Business: 2
National Review: 9
New York Post: 4
NPR: 1
POLITICO: 1
Real Clear Politics: 3
Reuters: 2
The Associated Press: 1
The Daily Caller: 1
The Federalist: 3
The Hill: 11
The New York Times: 3
The Washington Post: 3 + 1 with error page
The Washington Times: 11
USA Today: 4
Wall Street Journal: 13
Washington Examiner: 9
Washington Free Beacon: 5 | | | Beijing is banning Biebz. That's right: Pop star Justin Bieber is no longer welcome in China, due to his "bad behavior," The Guardian reports. From the article: In a statement posted on its website this week, Beijing's culture bureau explained that unspecified misdemeanours meant the artist, who has had repeated run-ins with the law -- including for drunken drag racing in a yellow Lamborghini -- was unsuitable for Chinese ears. "Justin Bieber is a gifted singer, but he is also a controversial young foreign singer," said the bureau, which was answering a fan's demand for a '"detailed explanation'" about the former teen star's absence from Chinese stages.
As Bieber famously sings: Is it too late now to say sorry? Answer: Yes. | | | Here's Biden just greeting some of his fans. TGIF! Remember to tell your friends, fans, family-- whoever! -- to subscribe. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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