Ex-Trump official says president is being 'propped up' by allies who are using him

President Donald Trump is being propped up by those in a position to manipulate him, a former Trump admin official has claimed.

Anthony Scaramucci, who briefly served as White House communications director in Trump's first term, believes that those pulling strings behind the scenes are readily and easily able to manipulate the president. Scaramucci has previously claimed that the Trump family is personally profiting from the Iran war and leveraging the president's position to build family wealth.

Speaking to Legal AF, Scaramucci alleged, "There's a lot of money that's been drafted to him in the Middle East for different things. There are a lot of donors who have given him money that have influenced his policy decisions." Scaramucci also characterized the Trump administration as operating a kleptocracy, stating the family aims to become "the richest family when he leaves office."

Speaking during an appearance on The Daily Beast's podcast, Scaramucci claimed those working for Trump are also profiting off the president.

“People are like, OK, this is an empty vessel,” Scaramucci said. “I can use this guy as a means to get what I want in Washington. People are like, OK… I can implement my Project 2025.

"I can implement my wholesale changes to the American military… I can use this guy as a means, as a medium, to get what I want in Washington. So let’s keep him propped up.”

Scaramucci also alleged this meant that Trump is unable to implement a clear geopolitical strategy. He said, "He's got no strategy. If you have no idea what you're doing, your enemy also doesn't know what you're doing.

"There’s nobody controlling him… and this is a very different administration than Trump [term] one. He’s going to be like an open floodgate."

Scaramucci's relationship with Trump deteriorated sharply after his 11-day tenure as White House Communications Director in 2017. Following his dismissal, Scaramucci became increasingly critical of Trump's leadership and governance.