White House snubs Azar, installs Trump loyalist as HHS spokesperson
The White House is installing Trump campaign veteran Michael Caputo in the health department’s top communications position, Caputo confirmed to POLITICO.
Caputo is an intense Trump loyalist whose recent book “The Ukraine Hoax,” alleged a conspiracy behind Trump’s impeachment. Story continuesVerma last week publicly announced an initiative to disburse billions of dollars to hard-hit health care providers that was part of Azar’s portfolio — a move that rattled Azar’s allies given that the health secretary was out of the office that day, mourning the death of his father. Two of Verma’s supporters said that the Medicare chief was directed to make the announcement at the behest of the White House.
“This little guy lost so many Iranian mullah friends to the [coronavirus] that he’s in mourning. Thoughts and prayers,” Caputo wrote on March 12, quoting a tweet by former Obama administration official Ben Rhodes. Caputo is a longtime friend of Trump ally Roger Stone and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, both of whom were convicted of crimes in the last two years.
However, White House officials are looking to shake up HHS communications after growing perturbed by a series of news reports, including a story this week in The Daily Beast that called Azar “a rare and unlikely hero” inside the Trump administration — an article that was heavily circulated by White House officials.
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