SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci offered a candid psychological portrait of President Donald Trump on Saturday, arguing that critics and world leaders fundamentally misread the president's behavior.
Scaramucci said many people struggle to understand how Trump became president because they have never met him in person. "People can't figure out how Trump got to the presidency because they've never been in a room with him," he wrote on X. He described Trump as "disarming, gregarious, genuinely charming" in person, which he said contrasts sharply with his more combative public image.
Scaramucci, the former White House communications director, highlighted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney as a prime example of Trump's private dynamic. Despite public disagreements, he said Trump calls Carney "more than any other Western leader" because Carney's resistance earns his respect.
"He craves the pushback. He just can't admit it," Scaramucci wrote.
The remarks carry added weight given that Scaramucci has separately and publicly called for Trump's removal from office. Earlier this week, Scaramucci said his brief White House tenure created severe strain at home, adding that his wife strongly opposed Trump and their marriage was "almost" pushed to the breaking point during that period.
Scaramucci's recent remarks also mark a sharp reversal from his earlier comments, when he described Trump as a "reality TV producer" who engineers cycles of conflict for attention and control.
