Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary who became a celebrity in his own right, has resigned, according to multiple reports. Spicer tendered his resignation Friday morning following the hiring of Anthony Scaramucci has communications director.
Spicer reportedly resisted the hiring of Scaramucci for the comms director job, which Spicer held early in the administration and was later occupied by Mike Dubke. Dubke left the White House in May after approximately two months on the job. Scaramucci is an investment banker and political fundraiser for Republicans. A frequent television presence during the 2016 campaign, first on behalf of Scott Walker and Jeb Bush before lending his support to Trump, Scaramucci has no formal experience in political communications.
A veteran of the Republican National Committee, Spicer was reportedly joined in his resistance to hiring Scaramucci by chief of staff Reince Priebus (the former chairman of the RNC) and Steve Bannon. Priebus tells me that’s not the case. “I support Anthony 100%,” Priebus said. “We go back a long, long way and are very good friends. All good here.”
Spicer’s resignation caught at least some White House communications staff off-guard. “I did not know this,” said one White House source when asked about it.
