Newly appointed White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci said Sunday he will take “drastic action” to stop staff members from leaking information to the press.
“We gotta get the leaks stopped,” he said on “Fox News Sunday.” “I will take dramatic action to stop those leaks.”
“If the leaks don’t stop, I’m going to pare down the staff because it’s just not right,” he continued.
He made similar comments on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” shifting discussion from President Donald Trump’s tweet about his power to pardon to a condemnation of the staffers leaking the president’s conversations.
“We’re going to work on culturally changing that, because it’s extremely unprofessional,” he said. “He’s the commander in chief, president of the United States, the people that are standing around him that are doing that sort of nonsenses are actually un-American, they’re doing an injustice to the institution of the American presidency.”
“If they’re going to stay on that staff, they’re going to stop leaking,” he continued. “If you’re going to keep leaking, I’m going to fire everybody.”
Scaramucci, a former Wall Street financier, was appointed to his new role late last week. According to a New York Times report, part of why Trump wanted Scaramucci in the post is the president believed he could help crack down on leakers.
Leaks to the press have been pervasive throughout the first six months of Trump’s presidency. They’ve ranged from highly consequential stories, such as the president revealing classified information during a meeting with Russian officials, to gossipy revelations about internal battles among the president’s inner circle.
Trump himself has repeatedly vowed to crack down on those leaks, as well as disclosures to the press made by members of the intelligence community.