Before Sean Spicer was a fluorescent yellow canary-man who danced like a frog trying to escape from a bucket, he was Donald Trump’s press secretary.
Remember? Back in the fore-fore times, when we thought maybe Trump would settle down for his nap, but he instead insisted he’d had the biggest inauguration crowd of all times? Yeah, Spicer was the point man for all that gaslighting.
And now?
Since leaving the administration three years ago, Spicer has landed a few gigs on television, such as a contestant on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” and a show on conservative-leaning Newsmax TV. He has also penned two books.But his career arc has veered far from the usual gigs secured by former White House press secretaries and senior administration officials. There’s been no cushy landing on K Street or high-profile consultancy at a major lobbying or public relations firm. It’s a fate that might befall many others in Trumpworld if the president loses — or even if they don’t relish staying on through a second term.
I wouldn’t say I want former Trump staffers to be totally ostracized and sent scurrying from Washington shedding black, briny tears. I won’t say it because I hardly talk to anyone — but I will write it.
I think I’m being fair, too, because when you gleefully work for the Devil, you shouldn’t be able to just seamlessly reenter your former life, such as it was.
And a lot of them won’t. Apparently, many willing Trumpites are finding out now that no Christmas is coming.
“Quiet conversations in Gmail are more active now than would be expected a month before an election,” said a senior Republican strategist who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive conversations. “I have a buddy in the administration who is starting to quietly move his resume around, and he’s noticed people who he thought would be quicker to respond to inquiries have been less so. He called it ‘the Trump stink. How much Trump stink is on my resume right now?'”
But while a lot of former Trumpites will — or already have — landed on their feet, there just aren’t enough Fox pundit slots for everyone. And those who were mired in the especially fraught areas of Trumpworld — such as its policies related to race and immigration — are facing a pretty steep uphill climb.
The longtime GOP strategist who runs a public affairs firm recalled coming close to hiring a former Trump White House staffer until a Google search revealed the prospective hire’s track record defending Trump on race and immigration. It ground the interview process to a halt, the strategist said.“A lot of people who came into this in 2015 and 2016, they knew that there would be a stigma going into this — and it’ll likely last for a very long time,” said a Trump campaign staffer. “Probably for the rest of their lives. I don’t think that’s lost on anyone.”
Yeah, that’s a shame. A real shame.
“This guy is a natural. Sometimes I laugh so hard I cry.” — Bette Midler on Aldous J. Pennyfarthing, via Twitter. Find out what made dear Bette break up. Dear Fcking Lunatic: 101 Obscenely Rude Letters to Donald Trump and its boffo sequels Dear Prsident A**clown: 101 More Rude Letters to Donald Trump and Dear F*cking Moron: 101 More Letters to Donald Trump by Aldous J. Pennyfarthing are now available for a song! Click those links, yo!