Foul-mouthed Scaramucci lights blue touch paper of White House fireworks

Donald Trump's new communications director has exploded smouldering tensions at the White House into a wildfire, angrily daring the US president's chief of staff to deny he was a "leaker" and exposing West Wing backstabbing in language more suited to a gangster movie.

In a pull-no-punches impromptu CNN interview that he said was authorised by Mr Trump, Anthony Scaramucci went after chief of staff Reince Priebus in graphic terms.