Mr. Scaramucci, we can help [Updated]

Whether you think White House messaging is a chaotic mess or part of a cunning strategy to lob stun grenades at the news media, it’s clear that the new communications director fell on his face this week.

Anthony Scaramucci, praised just days earlier for a smooth performance in his first press conference, made the oldest error in the PR book. He vented to a reporter and backstabbed his colleagues in potty-mouthed language, and then seemed perplexed that his words ended up in print.

Later Scaramucci complained, “I made a mistake in trusting in a reporter. It won’t happen again,” prompting one unkind observer to reply, “Isn’t this Comms 101?”