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Donald Trump says he wants to do press briefings instead of Sean Spicer

He has been frustrated with different messages coming from the White House

Clark Mindock
New York
Friday 12 May 2017 23:01 BST
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President Trump has suggested getting rid of the daily press briefings
President Trump has suggested getting rid of the daily press briefings (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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President Donald Trump apparently isn’t too happy about the mismatched messages coming from his communications team and says it may be best if he takes on the role of conducting press briefings himself.

Mr Trump made the suggestion during an interview with Fox News that is set to air this weekend.

“We don’t have press conferences, we just don’t have them, unless I have them every two weeks and I do them myself,” Mr Trump said in a clip, describing his post-press briefing dream life. “I think it’s a good idea.”

Mr Trump's comments come days after White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer made odd headlines for hiding in bushes in a bid to momentarily avoid the press.

The White House later forced media outlets to correct this detail, clarifying that Mr Spicer was in fact hiding “among” the bushes near the Oval Office. When he emerged, he made the assembled press turn off their cameras and lights.

In a clip of the interview, Mr Trump appears to be seated in the White House with cameras and lights pointed straight at him. There are no visible bushes nearby.

Mr Spicer took a leave of absence from the daily press briefings over the next couple of days for Navy Reserve duty. He was back Friday and joked that he heard he had been missed by the press. He then defended Mr Trump’s idea to get rid of the briefings.

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