Former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci offered advice to former national security adviser John Bolton on how to handle insults from President Trump.
Scaramucci, a wealthy financier, wrote a Thursday opinion piece in the Washington Post slamming Trump for the president’s attacks on Bolton since reported claims in Bolton’s forthcoming memoir leaked to the press. Bolton’s book says that Trump told Bolton that U.S. military aid to Ukraine hinged on Ukraine investigating potentially corrupt dealings by Democrats.
Since the book’s claims leaked on Sunday, Trump has attacked Bolton’s credibility while denying that the alleged conversation took place. The president has accused Bolton of using the leak to promote his book, which will cover Bolton’s time in the White House.
“I know what Bolton is going through very well because Trump did the same to me,” Scaramucci wrote. “He and his administration officials did the same thing with his attorney Michael Cohen, his attorney general Jeff Sessions, his chief of staff John Kelly, and his defense secretary James Mattis.”
Scaramucci, 56, worked for the White House for 11 days in July 2017 before he was fired. Scaramucci has since turned against Trump, and the two have attacked each other through the press and on social media.
“Respect for the office of the presidency allows us to normalize what he is doing. We also have issues related to human weakness and are attracted to power, even when we have previously been people of ethics and principles,” Scaramucci said, explaining why he and others have agreed to work for the Trump administration.
“Eventually, after you’ve realized you can’t mitigate the worst outcomes or moderate the president at all, you must either disavow your self-worth and personal integrity or else stand up and speak out,” Scaramucci said.
Bolton left the administration in September, saying he had resigned. Trump claimed that he had fired Bolton because the president “disagreed strongly” with much of Bolton’s advice.
