No one ever suggested Donald Trump is a patient, meditative, reflective decision-maker, but more and more his impulsive behavior and unwillingness or incapability to focus is raising concerns about how he would run the White House.
"I think he's definitely got attention deficit disorder. That doesn't mean he isn't really smart — it just means he's not at his best when he's asked to dwell on a topic," Trump biographer Michael D'Antonio told Politico.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This much is clear though: Trump would certainly be a contrast to the current president, "a reader by disposition and a lawyer by training who stays up late plowing through 'an insane amount of paper,'" Politico writes. George W. Bush also "read volumes of material every night." But Trump has said he doesn't like long reports: "Send me, like, three pages," he told Washington Post reporters of his briefing preferences. And on reading in general, he says he "doesn't have much time."
Jack O'Donnell, who served as one of Trump's Atlantic City casino executives, has seen how this works out, at least in the business world. O'Donnell recalled that when he worked for successful casino magnate Steve Wynn, the two would have eight- or nine-hour meetings.
That wasn't how Trump did things. "He would talk for a few minutes and then change the subject," O'Donnell said. "I don't think he has the capacity to listen."
-
Trump’s poll collapse: can he stop the slide?Talking Point President who promised to ease cost-of-living has found that US economic woes can’t be solved ‘via executive fiat’
-
Codeword: December 7, 2025The daily codeword puzzle from The Week
-
Sudoku hard: December 7, 2025The daily hard sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
Trump tightens restrictions for work visasSpeed Read The length of work permits for asylum seekers and refugees has been shortened from five years to 18 months
-
Supreme Court revives Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read Texas Republicans can use the congressional map they approved in August at President Donald Trump’s behest
-
Boat strike footage rattles some lawmakersSpeed Read ‘Disturbing’ footage of the Sept. 2 attack on an alleged drug-trafficking boat also shows the second strike that killed two survivors who were clinging to the wreckage
-
Trump boosts gas cars in fuel economy rollbackspeed read Watering down fuel efficiency standards is another blow to former President Biden’s effort to boost electric vehicles
-
Hegseth’s Signal chat put troops in peril, probe findsSpeed Read The defense secretary risked the lives of military personnel and violated Pentagon rules, says new report
-
Trump pardons Texas Democratic congressmanspeed read Rep. Henry Cuellar was charged with accepting foreign bribes tied to Azerbaijan and Mexico
-
GOP wins tight House race in red Tennessee districtSpeed Read Republicans maintained their advantage in the House
-
Trump targets ‘garbage’ Somalis ahead of ICE raidsSpeed Read The Department of Homeland Security will launch an immigration operation targeting Somali immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area
