Donald Trump "growing increasingly frustrated" in new job
US President Donald Trump is "growing increasingly frustrated" in the face of realistic governing challenges in his new job. In interviews with American political-journal 'Politico', nearly two dozen people who were with him since he took over the role anonymously said his mood has oscillated between surprise and anger as he faced the predictable realities like congressional delays, legal disputes, staff friction and leaks.
In three weeks since inauguration
Since taking over the seat on January 20, Trump has been named in 50+ federal cases in 17 American states. Most of these lawsuits are against an executive order that banned immigrants from seven Muslim-dominated countries. The White House is also investigating media-leaks after details of Trump's conversations with foreign leaders were released. Trump's aides agreed to the said interview on condition of anonymity.
Trump feels the leaks reflect poorly on him
According to the journal, Trump admitted to an associate that he was tired of leaks from his White House staff "because it reflects on me," and that he going to sit down staffers and instruct them "to cut this shit out."
Reported infighting among White House staff
Trump reportedly told his team "Reince [Priebus] is in charge. He's the chief of staff. Everything has to go through him", to stop any "staff infighting." Separately, the White House has denied rumours that Chief strategist Steve Bannon tried to order Homeland Security secretary John Kelly to not exempt green-card holders from the ban. Kelly retorted saying he only took orders from the president.
Details of the leak on call with Putin
It was leaked to the media that in his first call to Russian president Putin, Trump denounced a 2010 treaty, called START treaty, that restricts US and Russian nuclear warheads as a bad deal for the US. When Putin suggested extending the treaty, Trump asked his aides what the treaty was. White House claims he knew about it but he was just seeking advice.
The 'bathrobe' episode
The internet was flooded with pictures of Donald Trump wearing a bathrobe after press secretary Sean Spicer said: "I don't think the President owns a bathrobe, (he) definitely doesn't wear one." The statement was in response to a question on a New York Times article detailing the President's routine in first two weeks in office. Spicer claimed article was 'riddled with inaccuracies and lies.'
What did the report say?
The NYT article reported "Usually around 6:30 pm...When Mr Trump is not watching television in his bathrobe or on his phone reaching out to old campaign hands and advisers, he will sometimes set off to explore the unfamiliar surroundings of his new home."
