Records Are Made to Be Broken

In just five days, Katie Zacharia
Beat Anthony Scaramucci’s record
To become the number one pariah.

She did not preach doom like Jeremiah,
But almost as soon as she came on board,
In just five days, Katie Zacharia

Spoke out for a wannabe messiah
Managed—instead of getting an award—
To become the number one pariah.

For a leader worse than Hezekiah
No one should allow her ox to be gored.
In just five days, Katie Zachariah,

To please a boss colored like papaya,
Tried harder than Scaramucci and scored
To become the number one pariah.

Now Katie gets to go to the playa,
Not really such a terrible reward.
In just five days, Katie Zacharia
Has become the number one pariah.

Poet’s Note: Now we know. We thought some public servants show up merely to enrich themselves, but many of us had no idea that some enter into The Games, a type of Olympics for Class Clowns that Never Grew Up. Now I wonder if Scaramucci made his comment triumphantly or ruefully. And by the way, who knew that Scaramucci was still hanging around waiting to get his name in the news? “Anthony Scaramucci Reacts To Katie Zacharia’s White House Tenure Being Shorter Than His: ‘Records Are Made To Be Broken’” by Ted Johnson, Deadline, 16 October 2026

Marco Katz Montiel composes poetry and prose in Spanish, English, and musical notes. He went to college late, and then alienated one university by publishing about bigotry on campus and got kicked to the curb by two others for his union activities. Still, Marco managed to graduate and even publish a book on music and literature with Palgrave. His essays, poems, and stories appear in Ploughshares, Jerry Jazz Music, English Studies in Latin America, Copihue Poetry, Camino Real, WestWard Quarterly, Lowestoft Chronicle, Dissident Voice, and in the anthologies Cartas de desamor y otras adicciones, There’s No Place, and the Capital City Press Anthology. Read other articles by Marco Katz, or visit Marco Katz's website.