(CNN) White House press secretary Sean Spicer resigned Friday morning after President Donald Trump named a new White House communications director, capping off a rollercoaster six-month tenure as the chief spokesman for an administration besieged by a steady drumbeat of controversy.

Newly-minted communications director Anthony Scaramucci, taking to the White House briefing room for the first time early Friday afternoon, announced that principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will take over as press secretary.

Spicer's resignation came after Scaramucci, a New York financier and former Trump campaign fundraiser, accepted the new job, a move Spicer adamantly opposed, multiple sources said. His resignation came in spite of Trump's request that he remain in this position, a White House official and top GOP advisers said.

"I am grateful for Sean's work on behalf of my administration and the American people. I wish him continued success as he moves on to pursue new opportunities -- just look at his great television ratings," Trump said in a statement Sanders delivered from the White House podium.

Trump also called Scaramucci "an important addition to this administration" in the statement read by Sanders.

The resignation marked the end of one of the most tumultuous tenures for a White House press secretary, one that saw Spicer repeatedly undermined in his role as the White House's public-facing spokesman by the President's own public statements and tweets.

"It's been an honor & a privilege to serve @POTUS @realDonaldTrump & this amazing country. I will continue my service through August," Spicer tweeted

It's been an honor & a privilege to serve @POTUS @realDonaldTrump & this amazing country. I will continue my service through August — Sean Spicer (@PressSec) July 21, 2017

He told CNN on Friday that he resigned out of a desire "to give the President and the new team a clean slate."

Still, Spicer's resignation once again put a spotlight on discord inside the West Wing, with the President's top aides divided over Scaramucci's hire -- palace intrigue that Scaramucci sought to put to rest during his first briefing.

Spicer handled the responsibilities of both press secretary and communications director for much of his tenure, overseeing the White House's response to a near non-stop deluge of controversy, particularly concerning the widening federal investigation into potential ties between Trump campaign associates and Russian officials.

White House chief of staff Reince Priebus introduced Scaramucci as the new communications director to a round of applause, according to a source in the room.

The source told CNN that Spicer said Scaramucci was going to do a great job and will help with transition. He thanked the team, who gave him a round of applause. The source added that Spicer was really upset but handled the introduction for Scaramucci well.

White House staffers were "shocked" by Spicer's sudden resignation, two administration officials told CNN.

Trump wanted Scaramucci in the White House

Scaramucci's hiring began to come together Thursday night, but as news of the hire began to leak, Spicer, Priebus and chief strategist Steve Bannon found themselves largely in the dark -- unaware of the President's already firm intention to tap Scaramucci for the top communications post, largely at the urging of his son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner and his daughter Ivanka Trump.

Priebus, whose fraught relationship with Scaramucci is well-known, said Friday that he supports the new communications director "100%."

"We go back a long way and are very good friends," Priebus said. "All good here."

But Scaramucci's appointment rocked a West Wing that was deeply divided over Scaramucci's hire, with sources telling CNN that both Priebus and Bannon fiercely opposed Scaramucci's hire while the President's son-in-law and daughter, who are both top advisers, encouraged the move.

Trump has been pushing for Scaramucci to come in for a while, according to a source familiar with the decision.

That source told CNN that since the communications director job was open, Trump realized he would install Scaramucci in that role. This source added that Spicer worried Scaramucci wouldn't know Washington and that it would fall to Spicer to do both jobs, which he considered to be untenable.

Scaramucci pushed back on reports of any discord inside the West Wing, especially on reports that his relationship with Priebus has been frought.

"Reince and I have been personal friends for six years," Scaramucci said. "We are a little bit like brothers where we rough each other up once in a while. But he's a dear friend."

Scaramucci said he "would have loved" for Spicer to stay on in the administration, but said he respected Spicer's decision to "clear the slate" for him. He also called Bannon "one of the smartest people I know."

"I don't have any friction with Sean, I don't have any friction with Reince," Scaramucci said.

Still, Scaramucci said he would report "directly" to the President, and that he and Priebus would work together. Sanders declined to say whether she would report directly to Priebus or Scaramucci, instead promising she and Scaramucci would work together as a "team" and noting that they both serve "at the pleasure of the president."

Spicer's job tough since Day 1

Spicer was repeatedly thrust into a combative role, ordered by the President to take to the briefing room on his first full day in office to lambast the media for coverage of the size of the crowd that attended Trump's inauguration.

The moment quickly defined Spicer's public-facing relationship with the press and his daily White House briefing quickly became must-watch TV -- including for the president of the United States, who was sometimes critical of Spicer's performance.

One White House official said he believes a "fresh start will inject some energy" in a communications operation that has been besieged for weeks by the deluge of Russia-related reports and a sense of disarray.

After being pulled away from the daily televised briefing, which had vaulted a one-time Washington hand into infamous status, Spicer told reporters he would move to an elevated role in the West Wing overseeing the communications department and press shop and said he was helping to choose his successor as press secretary.

That didn't happen, a point finally made clear Friday when Trump offered the chief communications job to Scaramucci. Not long after, Spicer resigned.

It was the latest snub for Spicer, who was repeatedly undermined by the President. But Spicer also suffered more personal jabs, like when he was kept off the small list of White House staffers who joined the President in meeting the Pope in May. Spicer, a devout Catholic, believed he would be joining the group and was excited to check the meeting off his bucket list.

Scaramucci was hired in large part because the President raved about his former fundraiser's performance as a surrogate on television, but Trump expected Spicer would continue to oversee many of the broader responsibilities of a communications director, a source close to the White House told CNN.

"Trump wanted Scaramucci on television as a surrogate for the White House and wanted to give him more of a formal title. There was simply no understanding by the President that the communications director title comes with lots of responsibilities, not just going on television," the source said.

Spicer has slowly receded from the public-facing aspects of his role, turning over the majority of daily White House briefings to principal Sanders in the last month. At the same time, the White House has cut down its on-camera briefings, cutting back on the tradition of regular on-camera briefings from the White House podium.

Spicer's tenure was defined by his struggle to beat back the cascade of controversy overwhelming the administration and how he handled the difficult task of defending a president lacking any interest in sticking to a broader communications strategy other than his own.

He was repeatedly called out for issuing statements that were later proven to be false or misleading, often as a result of the President's own public pronouncements that wound up contradicting his chief spokesman.

And Spicer also served on the front line of the administration's frequent crusades against the media, often seeking to match the president's combative and confrontational tone in answering reporters' questions during White House briefings.

That knee-jerk combativeness earned him national fame and often ridicule as he was parodied on "Saturday Night Live" by actress Melissa McCarthy as a short-tempered spokesman yearning for the President's affection.

He was also defined by his own missteps.

In April, he attracted a storm of condemnation after he incorrectly argued that even Adolf Hitler did not use chemical weapons during World War II in an over-the-top attempt to demonize Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after the Syrian dictator used sarin gas against civilians. Spicer later apologized for those comments.

This story is breaking and will update.</s>WASHINGTON — Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, resigned Friday after telling President Trump he vehemently disagreed with his appointment of Anthony Scaramucci, a New York financier, as his new communications director.

After offering Mr. Scaramucci the job on Friday morning, Mr. Trump asked Mr. Spicer to stay on as press secretary, reporting to Mr. Scaramucci. But Mr. Spicer rejected the offer, expressing his belief that Mr. Scaramucci’s hiring would add to the confusion and uncertainty already engulfing the White House, according to two people with direct knowledge of the exchange.

Mr. Spicer’s top deputy, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, will serve as press secretary instead.

The long-anticipated resignation rattled an administration already reeling from the most trying two-week stretch of Mr. Trump’s presidency. The president’s health care effort foundered in the Senate last week, and next week promises no respite, with his son Donald Trump Jr. and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, due to testify before Congress on questions about their contacts with Russia.

If the moves amounted to a kind of organizational reset, it was not part of a pivot or grand redesign. The president, according to a dozen people familiar with the situation, meant to upgrade, not overhaul, his existing staff with the addition of a smooth-talking, Long Island-bred former hedge fund manager who is currently the senior vice president and chief strategy officer at the Export-Import Bank, which he joined just last month. His rapport with the president establishes a new power center in a building already bristling with rivalry.</s>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on changes to the White House communications staff (all times local):

New York financier Anthony Scaramucci has been formally named White House communications director and Sarah Huckabee Sanders has been promoted to press secretary in the Trump White House’s latest shakeup.

Trump says in a statement read by Sanders that he’s “grateful” for departing press secretary Sean Spicer’s “work on behalf of my administration and the American people.”

He adds: “just look at his great television ratings!”

Scaramucci also is addressing reporters at the White House. He calls Spicer “a true American patriot” and says he hopes Spicer “goes on to make a tremendous amount of money.”

Outgoing press Secretary Sean Spicer says that he chose to resign from his position to give incoming communications director Anthony Scaramucci a fresh start.

Spicer says during a brief phone conversation with The Associated Press following his announced departure that, “we’re at the point where” the president “could benefit from a clean slate.”

He says he felt it would be best for Scaramucci to be able to build his own operation “and chart a new way forward.”

Spicer is also complimenting Scaramucci, a New York financier and frequent defender of the president who was a staple at Trump Tower during the president’s transition.

Spicer says of Scaramucci’s hiring: “It’ll be great, he’s a tough guy.”

White House press secretary Sean Spicer says it’s been “an honor” and “privilege” to serve President Donald Trump and the country.

Spicer resigned Friday in protest over the hiring of a new White House communications director.

He says in a tweet that he will continue his service through August.

One person with knowledge of the situation said Spicer objected to the hiring of New York financier Anthony Scaramucci’s lack of qualifications for the communications role. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the personnel matter publicly.

White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will be conducting an on-camera briefing on Friday afternoon, following White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s resignation.

Spicer announced his departure after President Donald Trump hired a new White House communications director, ending his rocky six-month tenure as Trump’s top spokesman.

Sanders has been handling most of the briefing duties in recent weeks, and most briefings have been off-camera. The last on-camera White House briefing was held on June 29.

White House chief of staff Reince Priebus says he supports incoming communications director Anthony Scaramucci “100 percent.”

His comments come moments after White House press secretary Sean Spicer resigned over Scaramucci’s hiring.

Priebus and Spicer spent years working closely together at the Republican National Committee. Priebus has also reportedly opposed hiring Scaramucci for various administration positions.

Priebus told The Associated Press that he and Scaramucci are “very good friends.” He says it’s “all good here” at the White House.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer is resigning his position, according to two people with knowledge of the decision.

One of those people said Spicer is quitting because of objections over the appointment of a new White House communications director, New York financier Anthony Scaramucci.

The people with knowledge of the decision insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the personnel matter publicly.

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• Racist receipt? Waiter gets stiffed on tip, but that’s not worst part</s>White House press secretary Sean Spicer resigned from his post to protest against US President Donald Trump's decision to appoint New York financier Anthony Scaramucci as the new communications director, a media report said.

Spicer at a White House meeting this morning told the president that he vehemently disagreed with his choice for a new White House Communication Director.

"The president requested that Mr Spicer stay on, but Mr Spicer told Mr Trump that he believed the appointment was a major mistake, according to a person with direct knowledge of the exchange," The New York Times reported. The news was later confirmed by the White House.

The White House had been without a communications director since May, when Mike Dubke resigned from the role in the first personnel shakeup of the Trump administration.

Spicer had taken on the responsibilities associated with the job in the interim and strongly opposed Trump s decision to hire Scaramucci.

Ever since being appointed as the White House Press Secretary, Spicer had emerged as the house hold name in the US and globally, often facing tough questions from the media.</s>White House press secretary Sean Spicer resigned Friday morning, according to three White House officials.

Spicer’s resignation came after New York financier and former Trump campaign fundraiser Anthony Scaramucci accepted the position as White House communications director.

A White House official and top GOP adviser said President Donald Trump asked Spicer to stay on, but he resigned.

The resignation caps off one of the most tumultuous tenures for a White House press secretary, one that saw Spicer repeatedly undermined in his role as the White House’s public-facing spokesman by the President’s own public statements and tweets.

Spicer handled the responsibilities of both press secretary and communications director during much of his tenure, overseeing the White House’s response to a near non-stop deluge of controversy, particularly concerning the widening federal investigation into potential ties between Trump campaign associates and Russian officials.</s>Sean Spicer has resigned as White House press secretary, ABC News confirmed on Friday.According to people with knowledge of the decision, Spicer is quitting because of objections over the appointment of a new White House communications director, New York financier Anthony Scaramucci.Those with knowledge of the decision insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the personnel matter publicly.President Donald Trump did not ask for Spicer's resignation, senior White House sources told ABC News.Spicer has spent much less time in the briefing room in recent weeks, with principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders handling more of the daily briefingsHe did brief the press off camera this Monday, and that was his first time doing so in three weeks.Spicer, 45, worked as the communications director for the Republican National Committee before being named as Trump's press secretary during the transition.</s>ABC News(WASHINGTON) — Sean Spicer has resigned as White House press secretary, ABC News has confirmed.

Senior White House sources confirmed the move to ABC News, who noted that President Donald Trump did not ask for Spicer’s resignation.

This comes shortly after it was reported that Anthony Scaramucci, a Wall Street financier, was named as the new White House communications director.

Spicer has spent much less time in the briefing room in recent weeks, with principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders handling more of the daily briefings.

Spicer did brief the press off camera on Monday of this week, and that was his first time doing so in three weeks.

Spicer, 45, worked as the communications director for the Republican National Committee before being named as Trump’s press secretary during the transition.

His tenure got off to a rocky start when he made his first appearance in the White House briefing room the day after Trump took office and read a statement to the press about the size of the crowd at the inauguration.

The resignation comes the day after the Trump administration marked its first six months in office.</s>(ABC) — Sean Spicer has resigned as White House press secretary, ABC News has confirmed.

Senior White House sources confirmed the move to ABC News, who noted that President Donald Trump did not ask for Spicer’s resignation.

This comes shortly after it was reported that Anthony Scaramucci, a Wall Street financier, was named as the new White House communications director.

Spicer has spent much less time in the briefing room in recent weeks, with principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders handling more of the daily briefings.

Spicer did brief the press off camera on Monday of this week, and that was his first time doing so in three weeks.</s>Sarah Huckabee Sanders has been promoted to press secretary in the Trump White House's latest shakeup. (Source: CBS News)

New York financier Anthony Scaramucci has been formally named White House communications director and Sarah Huckabee Sanders has been promoted to press secretary in the Trump White House's latest shakeup.

The announcement came during the first White House press briefing since the appointments were announced Friday morning and just hours after the resignation of White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.

Trump says in a statement read by Sanders that he's "grateful" for departing press secretary Sean Spicer's "work on behalf of my administration and the American people."

Copyright 2017 KSLA. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>White House press secretary Sean Spicer walks down the hallway during President Donald Trump's visit to the Pentagon, Thursday, July 20, 2017. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has resigned over hiring of new communications aide. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer announces his intention to resign as White House Press Secretary due to Donald Trump's appointment of Anthony Scaramucci as the White House Communications Director, and will formally step down from the role in August 2017. Sarah Huckabee Sanders will take over as the White House Press Secretary in August 2017.