Donald Trump 'called the National Park Service on the first day of his presidency to complain about inauguration crowd photos'

  • President called the National Park Service the morning after his inauguration
  • Complained to director Michael Reynolds about a retweet comparing the crowd at his inauguration to that of Obama's in 2009
  • Asked Reynolds for pictures that would challenge reports saying fewer people came to his inauguration than Obama's
  • Reynolds did produce more pictures, but none confirmed Trump's claims
  • Experts have estimated that between 300,000 and 600,000 people came to Trump's inauguration, compared to Obama's 1.8 million

By Clemence Michallon For Dailymail.com

Published: 23:05 EST, 26 January 2017 | Updated: 00:09 EST, 27 January 2017

Donald Trump called the National Park Service on the first day of his presidency to complain about photos he thought didn't do justice to the size of the crowd at his inauguration, two reports said Thursday.

The president scolded acting National Park Service director Michael T Reynolds for a retweet showing side-by-side photos of Trump's inauguration and Obama's in 2009, the Washington Post reported citing three sources with knowledge of the conversation.

Trump also ordered Reynolds to provide more photos of his inaugural crowd, which he thought would contradict reports saying the attendance at his ceremony was just average. Reynolds did unearth additional pictures, but none of them confirmed Trump's claims.

White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders acknowledged that the phone call took place.

Donald Trump scolded acting National Park Service director Michael T Reynolds (left) on the first day of his presidency to complain about photos he thought didn't do justice to the size of the crowd at his inauguration, two reports said Thursday

The White House reached out to Reynolds and gave him a number to call, one source told the Washington Post. He dialed the number and was told to hold to speak to the president. 

Two sources with knowledge of the call confirmed to CNN that Trump had called Reynolds to express anger about a retweet comparing the crowd at his inauguration and that at Obama's. 

The National Park Service told the Washington Post it didn't comment on internal conversations among administration officials.

Sanders meanwhile said Trump's call showed the president was 'accessible'.  

The mogul has maintained that the crowd at his inauguration was bigger than what has been reported, despite evidence to the contrary.

The mogul has maintained that the crowd at his inauguration (pictured) was bigger than what has been reported, despite evidence to the contrary

A crowd science professor estimated the attendance at Trump's inauguration to be between 300,000 and 600,000, compared tp Obama's 1.8 million in 2009 (pictured)

Crowd science professor Kevin Still told Vox he estimated the attendance at Trump's inauguration to be between 300,000 and 600,000. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters during a press conference that 720,000 people appeared to have been present. All three numbers are smaller then the 1.8 million people who came to Obama's inauguration in 2009.

Washington DC's Metro also gave numbers that suggest fewer people came to Trump's inauguration than both of Obama's ceremonies. As of 11 am on each Inauguration Day, 193,000 trips had been taken this year, compared to 513,000 in 2009 and 317,000 in 2013. On the day of George W Bush's second inauguration, 197,000 trips had been taken by 11 am. 

On the day of the phone call, Trump complained about reports regarding the size of his crowd during visit to the CIA headquarters.

Spicer then gave a press conference where he complained to reporters about their crowd size coverage.  

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