Will Spicer blow the whistle?

Certainly the loyalty of a man who had to live with permanent mockery on the late night TV satire shows, as well as being contradicted and humiliated regularly by his boss The Donald, will be put to the test in the coming weeks, months and years. Trump even blamed the hapless Spicer for the fact he was being impersonated on Saturday Night Live by female comic Melissa McCarthy.

As one media pal put it to me: ‘Sean had a mission impossible, poisoned chalice job from the start. So who could blame him for cashing in down the line after the damage the president has done to his reputation and the stress level and abuse he’s been subjected to? On one level, Sean felt humiliated by Scaramucci being brought in above him, but on another it gave him the opportunity to escape the madhouse. At the moment, Sean doesn’t know if he’ll be called before any of the investigations. After that, the temptation to tell his story might just become irresistible.’

Meanwhile the arrival of former big time Wall Street wheeler-dealer Scaramucci has divided opinion on whether it’s a smart move by the president – or an own goal.

Certainly, despite the Scaramucci public declarations of ‘love’ for The Donald and the apologies for past criticisms, they make for an odd couple. Social media has been awash with replays of a 2015 Fox News appearance in which he blasted Trump as ‘anti-American’. That apart, his track record includes fundraising for Barack Obama, lauding Hillary Clinton, declaring his belief in the dangers of climate change, backing gay marriage, supporting women’s abortion rights, opposing economic protectionism. He also has a history of backing Obama’s attempts to bring in stricter gun control legislation, All, of course, the converse of the president’s campaign pitch to his core support base, including the hugely influential pro-gun lobby.

And only days before his appointment ‘The Mooch’ even tweeted his support for Attorney General Sessions ‘recusal’ decision.

So why appoint him? One White House source told me: ‘Anthony is one helluva clever guy, and sometimes a convert makes the most effective friend. He’s also no fan of the Steve Bannon faction and that could help the balance of power and influence here. It’s become a joke to say his name reminds people of that line in The Queen classic, Bohemian Rhapsody, but maybe another British pop star’s hit makes more sense. Do you remember Sade’s ‘Smooth Operator’, well that’s The Mooch all over?’