| | | | And just like that, the Mooch era is over.
Eleven days after Anthony Scaramucci was hired as White House communications director, he was pushed out from that post by new chief of staff John Kelly.
Scaramucci's firing came five days after he made national and international headlines in an interview with the New Yorker's Ryan Lizza in which he savaged a number of senior White House staffers in explicit and vulgar terms.
What did Scaramucci's brief tenure -- and rapid dismissal -- teach us about Trump, Kelly and this White House? Here are four lessons learned (and make sure to check out my longer piece on the Mooch's ouster):
1. Kelly is in charge (for now): For those who doubted whether Kelly would have the power to hire and fire, the Scaramucci move should clear that up. Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said at Monday's briefing that Kelly has "full authority" in the White House. The danger for Kelly is that Trump listens less to his advice the longer he is in the job.
2. No one gets bigger than Trump: Any time someone in the Trump orbit gets more media attention -- good or bad --- they had better watch out. Trump is not a fan of being shown up by people who work for him.
3. The laws of political gravity still (mostly) hold: In any previous White House, Scaramucci would have been fired the day the New Yorker interview came out. In this White House, Scaramucci lasted five days -- but he still got fired.
4. There is chaos at the White House: Trump, in a tweet Monday morning, insisted there was "no WH chaos." That simply doesn't jibe with reality; in the past four days, the chief of staff has been fired and replaced, and the communications director, who was hired 10 days ago, was also let go. Oh, and also the Senate failed to pass a health care bill. That reeks of chaos.
-- Chris | | Speaking of Scaramucci...
In the Harvard Law School alumni directory, which was published in 2011, the Mooch is erroneously listed as dead. Scaramucci, 53, is -- in fact -- still alive. He graduated Harvard Law School in 1989.
A Harvard Law spokeswoman told CNN in an email statement: "Regrettably, there is an error in the Harvard Law School alumni directory in the listing for Anthony Scaramucci. We offer our sincere apologies to Mr. Scaramucci. The error will be corrected in subsequent editions."
The Washington Post first reported the error. | | | Many people began making Mooch jokes on social media Monday. But actress Kate Hudson's Instagram made us LOL. She posted a photoshopped image of the Mooch and Trump on the movie poster for her popular rom-com "How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days." The caption read: "Box office results are in! The #1 comedy in America!" | | CNN's Ryan Struyk writes:
The days in the White House are seemingly numbered for some in the Trump administration. White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci on Monday became the latest aide to leave the West Wing, after just five official days on the job (a total of 11 days after his role was announced). Here's a look at the departures so far, and how many days they stayed in their positions. - Reince Priebus: Chief of staff for 189 days
- Sean Spicer: Press secretary for 182 days
- Sally Yates: Acting attorney general for 10 days
- Michael Flynn: National security adviser for 23 days
- James Comey: FBI director under Trump for 109 days
- Anthony Scaramucci: White House communications director for five days
For more, check out CNN's Grace Hauck's story here. | | Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" seemed appropriate...
"Scaramooch...scaramooch...I will not let him go...LET HIM GO!" | | | Did we mention we were at Politicon over the weekend? Saba talked to attendees and panelists about whether they feel the lines between politics and entertainment have blurred even more in 2017. Check out her story here. | | CNN's Liz Stark pointed out this article in The New York Times on Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Her summer docket has consisted of "blunt talk on big cases," according to analysis from NYT's Adam Liptak. In one of her recent appearances, Ginsburg said this of the three branches of government:
"If you took a poll today of the three branches of government, which one do the people think is doing the best job?" she asked. "We're way out in front of Congress." | | CHRISTIE STRIKES OUT AGAIN | | Gov. Chris Christie is not good at getting people to like him.
Ben Hutchison, a local news reporter for the station WISN12, tweeted a video of the New Jersey governor getting in the face of a baseball fan at a game in Milwaukee.
The fan, Brad Joseph, told ABC News about the encounter:
"I called him a hypocrite because I thought it needed to be said. He turned around back towards me and got in my face for what seemed like a long time, but was probably only about 30 seconds or a minute. (He) was yelling at me. First he told me, 'Why don't you have another beer?' which I thought was a decent comeback, and I thought that was kind of funny. Then he started calling me a tough guy." | | It's official: Los Angeles will host the Olympics in 2028. This marks the third time the City of Angels has been home to the event (the city hosted in 1984 and 1932). Per the Los Angeles Times:
"L.A.'s bid committee has estimated it would cost $5.3 billion to stage the Games and has predicted it can cover all expenses through revenues such as sponsorships and ticket sales." | |  | | In honor of the firing of the second best sunglassed man in Washington politics, above you see the first best sunglassed man in Washington politics. Spend your Monday night spreading the word: Tell everyone you know to subscribe to The Point! | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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