Former White House aide Anthony Scaramucci on Tuesday urged President Trump to “reverse course immediately” on his refusal to say he believes Russia interfered in the U.S. election.
Scaramucci, who served in a brief stint as White House communications director, suggested that Trump’s instincts as a “contrarian” and “entrepreneur” led him to seek out a good relationship with Putin.
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However, he warned that both the strategy and the optics of his performance on Monday are “very bad.”
“If you’re loyal to the president, which I happen to be very loyal to the president, loyalty right now requires you to tell the truth, and sit with him and explain to him the optics of the situation, why the optics are bad,” Scaramucci said on CNN’s “New Day.”
“The strategy… is very bad,” he continued. “You’ve got to back up the U.S. intelligence agencies here.”
Trump declared before his Monday meeting with Putin in Finland that U.S. “foolishness” and special counsel Robert Mueller‘s probe were to blame for souring relations between the two countries.
During a joint press conference, Trump said his intelligence officials have told him Russia interfered, but noted that Putin offered a “very strong” denial of the allegations.
The president concluded that he has confidence in “both parties,” but added that he didn’t “see any reason why it would be” Russia.
The president went on to deny that he colluded with Russia in the election, recounted his victory over Hillary Clinton and called Mueller’s investigation “ridiculous.”
Trump’s comments at Monday’s press conference have been widely condemned by Democrats, Republicans, media personalities and even some of the president’s staunchest supporters.