Conversations
Conversations
ABC Australia
Anthony Scaramucci on Trump, getting fired and owning his mistakes
45 minutes Posted Oct 19, 2026 at 12:15 am.
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Anthony “The Mooch” Scaramucci on his childhood, becoming a success on Wall Street and why backing Trump was a colossal error.
Anthony grew up on Long Island, part of a large Italian-American community and far away from the world of money, power and influence. 
When he was accepted into a prestigious university, Anthony’s parents put their retirements savings on the line to make sure he was able to go.
After graduating from Harvard Law School, he began his career on Wall Street, then into political fundraising as a way to network and meet new clients.
Famously, he would come to global notoriety when he was fired 11 days into his stint as White House spokesman during Donald Trump’s first term as US President.
Since then he has distanced himself from Trump and the MAGA movement and built a reputation as a sharp observer of US politics.
Anthony's latest book All the Wrong Moves: how three catastrophic decisions led to the rise of Trump is published by Penguin.
This episode of Conversations was produced by Jen Leake, the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.
It explores US politics, US history, Italian migration to American, poverty, Pennsylvania, Long Island, sand mining, family, middle class America, working class, elite universities, Harvard Law School, Wall Street, Goldman Sachs, Donald Trump, The White House, getting fired, MAGA, the Republican Party, Barack Obama,