Page 4 - ARUBA TODAY

A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 25 July 2017
Promising ‘A Better Deal,’ Democrats try to rebrand Scaramucci says

press briefings

Yet the challenges con- Pizza.” back on camera
fronting the Democrats’ Alluding to Schumer and
rebranding effort were im- Pelosi, one local Democrat By CATHERINE LUCEY
mediately apparent. in attendance, David Borg- Associated Press
As Schumer spoke along- er, said: “I have a lot of re- WASHINGTON (AP) — Presi-
side other House and Sen- spect for both of them, but dent Donald Trump’s new
ate Democrats, TV news I’m not sure they are the communications chief says
stations were instead show- leadership we need.” television cameras can
ing Trump adviser Jared “There might have to be start rolling again in the
Kushner denying collu- new leadership,” added White House briefing room.
sion with Russia, as Trump Borger, 62, a retired middle Anthony Scaramucci —
administration turmoil school science teacher, the Wall Street financier
swamped Democrats’ at- while acknowledging it who joined the administra-
tempt to get their message was not clear who that tion last week — tweeted
out. might be.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif, speaks in Berryville, And the Democrats’ new And despite Democrats’ on Monday that “the TV
Va., Monday, July 24, 2017, to unveil the Democrats new Cameras are back on.”
agenda. From letf are, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Rep. Ben message was presented claims of unity, and a base Under Press Secretary Sean
Ray Lujan, D-N.M., Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., Pelosi and Senate by some familiar old faces energized against Trump, Spicer — who resigned
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y. in Schumer and House Mi- divisions aplenty remain over Scaramucci’s new
(AP Photo/Cliff Owen) nority Leader Nancy Pelosi, in a party still nursing the role — the daily press brief-
By ERICA WERNER to competing in rural and whose potency as a GOP wounds of defeat as some ings had become must-
AP Congressional Corre- Republican-leaning areas. foil has been on display in of the liberals who backed see TV. But in recent weeks,
spondent Acknowledging they failed House special elections this Vermont Sen. Bernie Sand- Spicer moved into a more
BERRYVILLE, Va. (AP) — to offer a compelling eco- year. A small group of pro- ers still resent those who behind the scenes role,
Promising “A Better Deal” nomic message during the testers hoisted pizza boxes supported Hillary Clinton. putting the briefings largely
for American workers, Dem- 2016 election cycle, Demo- with photos of Pelosi and Nevertheless, as the sun in the hands of his deputy,
ocratic Party leaders rolled crats unveiled proposals the words “Better skills, Bet- beat down Monday and Sarah Huckabee Sanders,
out a new agenda with a on jobs, prescription drug ter jobs, Better wages, Still bugs swarmed in a local who made them off-cam-
populist pitch on Monday prices and more that they Pelosi.” The phrase played park, Democratic leaders era events.
aimed at winning back the hope will resonate in the off the full title of the Dem- claimed a positive agenda On Friday, Scaramucci ac-
working-class voters they 2018 midterm elections and ocratic platform — “A Bet- to take them out of their mi- cepted his new position
lost to President Donald beyond. “Too many Ameri- ter Deal: Better Jobs, Better nority status. “People need at an on-camera brief-
Trump in November. cans don’t know what Wages, Better Future” — to know not only what ing, and announced that
Democratic congressional we stand for,” said Sen- which some have mock- we’re fighting against, they Sanders will replace Spicer
leaders left the Beltway ate Minority Leader Chuck ingly compared to the need to know what we’re as press secretary. The last
for small-town Berryville, Schumer of New York. “Not Papa John’s pizza slogan, fighting for,” said Sen. Chris on-camera White House
Virginia, to stake a claim after today.” “Better Ingredients, Better Van Hollen of Maryland.q briefing prior to that was
June 29.
Scaramucci said that go-
ing forward, the briefings
will be back on camera.
“We’re televising the brief-
ings. We went to audio as
an experiment and now
we’re back on audio and
video,” he said Monday.
“I talked to the president
about it this morning.”
Scaramucci said that if
there was a reason to go
off-camera, he or Sanders
would explain why.
Over the weekend, Scar-
amucci pledged on Fox
News to begin “an era of
a new good feeling” and
said he hopes to “create a
more positive mojo.”
Spicer’s briefings became
memorable television in
the early days of the ad-
ministration.
His tenure got off to a rocky
start, when on Trump’s first
full day, Spicer claimed
that the media inaccu-
rately portrayed the size of
Trump’s inauguration audi-
ence and stormed out of
the briefing room without
answering questions.q