Trump's national security briefings are reportedly a mess

Trump speaks as Pence, McMaster look on.
(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

President Trump is undoubtedly a man who likes his bullet points, but Axios reports that six months into his term, the U.S. commander-in-chief still can't pay attention through a national security briefing. "Can you believe this guy?" Trump has reportedly joked as his national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, was talking.

McMaster is normally "crisp, linear, [and] dry," Axios adds, but has recently "started to adjust by making shorter points and [speaking in] a more colloquial tone" — that is, he's getting better at communicating in Trumpese. But even still, "Trump likes to be discursive and will frequently turn to others or meander into other subjects while McMaster is briefing him," Axios reports.

That might not be encouraging news to the 76 percent of Americans who think the United States is going to enter a "major war" in the next four years. Read more about how administration officials are learning to communicate with Trump at Axios.

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.