Donald Trump's tweets are a morning wake-up call like no other
Updated
First thing each day, as I savour my morning coffee, I read the President's tweets.
You know that moment when you reach out for your phone bleary eyed to read the morning's news? Well, I get a Twitter alert: @realdonaldtrump has a new tweet! It's a wake-up call like no other.
More than anything else in Donald Trump's America, these tweets tend to set up the tone of the day's news, and reveal his mood.
This week, he has not been happy, railing about the legal challenges to his executive order on immigration in particular.
It's an unusual way for a President to converse with his public, to say the least, and Mr Trump's unpredictability and penchant for speaking his mind with no regard for convention has observers aghast and the media scrambling.
His attacks on the judiciary, specifically, have caused concern, as he has personally criticised judges who are expected to rule impartially on his executive order on immigration.
Even his Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch told senators that such attacks are "demoralising" and "disheartening", although press secretary Sean Spicer vowed that the comments referred to criticism of the judiciary in general and not the President's tweets.
The press did not believe that one bit.
Let's be honest, White House press briefings are in part an exercise in evasion by the press secretary, no matter the administration. Journalists ask questions and the press secretary gives a partial or non-answer, unless it's an opportunity to wax lyrical about the administration's successful policies.
But in this case, the line between truth and fiction is becoming very blurry, if it's there at all.
A case in point, the list of terror attacks released this week by the White House which it said were not adequately covered by the media. Here's the BBC's response.
He said
She said (yes, she's back)
The President (and the 2016 election runner-up) responded to the 9th Circuit's decision to uphold the suspension of the Trump Administration's executive order. (By the way, it's one of many lawsuits that the new President is up against).
He also said
Easy D?
That's right, Easy D:
That's not real, obviously. But a worthy Twitter account to follow, where Trump executive orders are reworked into, ahem, art.
Is it a new nickname? Is it slang? A typo? What "Easy D" meant led to a lot of deep dives online.
Spicer says
Sean Spicer continues to play mop-up duty for his boss in the daily press briefing — which is no small feat. After being lampooned on Saturday Night Live last weekend, the pressure is on. And, it's little surprise that Mr Spicer has minced his words once or twice:
So, on questions about the President's late-night cable news viewing in a bath robe, Mr Spicer refuted the claims by saying, "I don't think the president wears a bathrobe and definitely doesn't own one."
Naturally, The internet replied with numerous instances of the Commander-in-Chief wearing a robe, like this:
And this:
What else has Mr Spicer had to deal with this week?
Well, there's the fight the President picked with the department store Nordstrom after it dropped his daughter, Ivanka's clothing line:
It raised serious questions again about the separation between the Trump business and the Trump Administration.
Mr Spicer's response? The President was within his rights to fight back because it was an attack on his family.
Then, senior counsellor to the President Kellyanne Conway told Fox and Friends to go and buy Ivanka Trump products:
She's been "counselled". It's been a tough week for Sean.
He might look to president Truman's press secretary for advice. In 1950, president Truman wrote a letter to Washington Post critic Paul Hume when he wrote a stinging review of Truman's daughter after a singing performance:
Truth ratings
49 per cent - That's the percentage of American voters that find the Trump Administration "truthful", according to a new Emerson College poll. Conversely, 48 per cent thought the opposite. Meanwhile, the news media is even less regarded; 53 per cent of those polled said the news media were "untruthful".
Steve who?
Much has been made of Donald Trump's chief strategist, Steve Bannon. Described as the mastermind of the Trump Administration's executive order on immigration and the ideologue of his inner circle, it's been suggested that he's "really" running the White House (just ahead of Fox News and eight spots ahead of "Magic 8 Ball"):
Opinions of Mr Bannon are varied. A new poll shows that while 69 per cent of Democrats find Mr Bannon unfavourable, 65 per cent of Republicans haven't heard enough about him to have an opinion.
School's out
Donald Trump's cabinet continues to flesh out but it's met plenty of roadblocks from Democrats (and some Republicans) along the way. The latest to join the Trump team is Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education:
Her path to join the cabinet wasn't easy — in an historic move after the Senate vote tied at 50-50, Vice-President Mike Pence was called in to cast the deciding vote:
Then — moments after she won the vote — a Republican introduced legislation to abolish the department she's set to run:
Trump tweets the classics
The President's rise to power has been defined by his use of Twitter — he continues to use the platform to speak directly to Americans. Now, The New Yorker imagines if he wrote the classics:
Weak Hamlet should stop moaning about past and get on with his life.
Eloquent stuff.
Melania's movements
The new First Lady is ramping up her staff — this week appointing Anna Cristina Niceta Lloyd as social secretary. Don't worry people, the Easter Egg roll is now in safe hands.
Where's Bernie?
Busy on Capitol Hill — opposing attorneys-general and debating Ted Cruz on health care. But the Bernie highlight of the week is this guy:
Ad of the week
A powerful spot from "Vote Vets" — a progressive group of veterans released this week:
Obama vs Branson
What does a President do when he finishes eight years in the White House? He goes kite-surfing with billionaire businessman Richard Branson. Check it out:
It's another late night in the office folks.
That's your wrap!
Topics: united-states
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