Trump's staff reportedly tries to keep him busy so he doesn't tweet or watch TV
President Donald Trump's staff is loading up his schedule with events in an effort to prevent him from firing off tweets or watching cable news, Axios reported.
Trump has been asking his staff for more free time, according to Axios, but they've been doing their best to limit his "screen time" to keep him from going off script during his first foreign trip since taking office.
The president embarked last Friday on a 9-day tour that includes stops in Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Vatican, Sicily, and Belgium. Following his visits to Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the Vatican, Trump traveled to Belgium ahead of a NATO summit.
Trump is known to spend a significant chunk of his time watching cable news, paying particular attention to stories about him and his administration and blasting out tweets shortly after news segments air.
Trump has repeatedly praised Fox News' morning show, "Fox and Friends," for its favorable coverage toward him, while lashing out at networks like MSNBC and CNN for their more critical coverage of his administration and policies. He has called the latter "fake news" on a number of occasions, both in public and on Twitter.
At night, the report said, the president occasionally "hate-watches" cable news shows that are critical of him, sometimes talking on the phone with friends while doing so. Shows and journalists that Trump has frequently lampooned include MSNBC's "Morning Joe," NBC's "Nightly News," and CNN's Jeff Zeleny and Don Lemon.