Team of Vipers_My 500 Extraordinary Days in the Trump White House by Cliff Sims

Author:Cliff Sims [Sims, Cliff]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781250223890
Amazon: 125022389X
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Published: 2019-01-29T00:00:00+00:00

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The Mooch affair demonstrated many of the flaws—serious flaws—in the Trump White House operation. There were too many factions, too many people interested in hurting others rather than carrying out their duties, and a lack of leadership in making sure this was all managed. But I also saw in retrospect the flaws in myself. The Scaramucci affair encapsulated every human flaw that I embodied during my time in the White House.

I was selfish. I viciously criticized Priebus, Bannon, and Spicer—all of whom outranked me—for their self-serving desire to keep Mooch out. But I let myself off the hook for my self-serving desire to have him come in. I was nakedly ambitious. I clawed, schemed, and maneuvered to secure a better position for myself, and saw Mooch as the ideal vehicle to help make that happen. I was ruthless. Spicer had a lovely family—a beautiful wife and precious children—whom I had met. I had even taken a family photo of them together in the Press Secretary’s office. But they never crossed my mind when I was laboring to push Sean out. I was a coward. I wasn’t as aggressive as I should have been in pushing back on Mooch’s early tactics, mainly because that could have hurt me (selfish once again). I lacked compassion. I relished the horror of former RNC aides who were suddenly terrified for their livelihoods and careers. Most of all, I saw how the White House, the need to stay in and cling to your access, can become more important than the values that you brought with you. This was a fate that would befall other good people I knew there.

Eight months after Scaramucci’s unceremonious departure from the West Wing, he came back to D.C. for the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner. Prior to the event, we met for lunch at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown. Dressed in tan cargo pants and a black, long-sleeve pullover, he appeared to be in high spirits.

“I kiss the ground every single morning I wake up,” he said, smiling. Over a massive plate of shrimp cocktail and crab cakes, Scaramucci explained that his White House experience—as short as it was—had been transformative.

Since early in the administration, when Scaramucci and Priebus first locked horns over Mooch’s potential White House job, Scaramucci had been in the process of selling his company, SkyBridge Capital, to a Chinese conglomerate for $180 million. The move required a lengthy review and regulatory approval that was not certain to come. Additionally, while his business was in limbo, Scaramucci’s relationship with his pregnant wife was deteriorating. In fact, she would later reveal that Mooch took the White House job without even discussing it with her.

“We actually never really talked about it,” she said in a televised interview. “So, obviously, he was campaigning with him. And then one thing led to another [and] kind of like spiraled out of control.”

She eventually filed for divorce, but after he left the White House they reconciled before their separation was finalized.

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