Scaramucci Reportedly Asks FBI to Investigate Reince Priebus For Leaking (UPDATE)
White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci took to Twitter late Wednesday evening to complain about the leaking of his financial disclosures to Politico for a story about his earnings at an investment firm he has an ownership stake in. In that tweet, he seemed to implicate White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus in the leak.
In light of the leak of my financial disclosure info which is a felony. I will be contacting @FBI and the @TheJusticeDept #swamp @Reince45
— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) July 27, 2017
Obviously, there was a lot of speculation right away that Scaramucci was directly accusing Priebus. Well, that speculation is now over, per The New Yorker’s Ryan Lizza:
In case there's any ambiguity in his tweet I can confirm that Scaramucci wants the FBI to investigate Reince for leaking.
— Ryan Lizza (@RyanLizza) July 27, 2017
The Department of Justice released a statement after Scaramucci’s appearance on Fox News’ Hannity where he complained about leaks:
DOJ spokesperson Sarah Isgur Flores issues a statement responding to @Scaramucci's @seanhannity appearance tonight: pic.twitter.com/7Nq1PEYr4S
— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner) July 27, 2017
Interestingly enough, Scaramucci had dinner Wednesday evening with Sean Hannity, President Trump, and ex-Fox News executive Bill Shine.
Scoop: Trump is dining tonight w/Sean Hannnity, Bill Shine (former Fox News executive), & Anthony Scaramucci, per to 2 knowledgeable sources
— Ryan Lizza (@RyanLizza) July 26, 2017
After breaking the news on Twitter, Lizza appeared on CNN to discuss the issue further, bringing up the long-simmering issues between Priebus and Scaramucci. After Trump won the election, Scaramucci wanted to get a position in the administration, but reportedly Priebus kept blocking him at every turn. Now that Scaramucci is in the White House, it appears he may be getting even with Priebus.
On top of that, Scaramucci stated that when he arrived, he was determined to push out those who leaked to the press (despite having a reputation as a notorious leaker himself).
UPDATE 1:22 AM ET: Well, Scaramucci has deleted the tweet. He claimed that he was including Priebus to state all senior administration officials are helping with the leaks.
Wrong! Tweet was public notice to leakers that all Sr Adm officials are helping to end illegal leaks. @Reince45 pic.twitter.com/AB0reseuX1
— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) July 27, 2017
In the wake of the accusatory tweet, the New York Times reported that Scaramucci’s financial disclosures have been publicly available since July 23rd.
Watch the clip above, via CNN.
[image via screengrab]
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