Report says Trump told aides he doesn’t have enough allies defending him on TV, and then a week of setbacks ended with a White House press ban

A senior administration official told The Wall Street Journal that President Donald Trump voiced deep frustration during a recent closed-door Oval Office meeting that well-known figures in Washington had not publicly thanked him for his attempt to overhaul the Kennedy Center. Democrats, arts patrons, and the courts have opposed his push to place his name on the center’s facade and carry out wide-ranging changes at the cultural institution.

Following his most recent court loss, Trump on Tuesday threatened to halt renovations at the performing-arts venue unless his name is added to the building. Advisers, administration officials, and others close to the president said that, twenty months into his second term, he is not getting what he wants and is unhappy about it.

For months, the president has objected, both in public and in private, to how the media covers his presidency. People familiar with the matter said those complaints peaked on Friday after one of his closest aides, Natalie Harp, played him clips of MS NOW anchors criticizing his administration. Hours later, he barred that network and two other news organizations from the White House.

Press ban follows court losses, energy prices, and midterm briefings

People familiar with the matter said the president has told aides he doesn’t have enough political allies to defend him on television and make the case for his second-term achievements. White House spokesman Steven Cheung said Trump’s allies have “done an incredible job of getting the message out to voters.”

Advisers have briefed the president on the difficulties Republicans face in the midterms and have told him the Iran war is dampening enthusiasm among his conservative base ahead of the election. His team still says it is cautiously optimistic about November.

Those frustrations grew last week while two top aides were away from the White House. Chief of staff Susie Wiles was in Florida and announced Wednesday that she is cancer-free. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt recently left the White House.

People familiar with the matter said many White House officials were caught off guard by the decision to ban MS NOW, CNN, and Politico. Aides quickly carried out the order and kept the outlets’ reporters from entering the White House on Saturday. A White House official said senior staff were with the president when he made the call.

A senior administration official responded with exasperation, arguing that the ban would do little to improve the press coverage the president wants. People close to the White House said Trump has talked about banning news outlets before, but aides have talked him into milder steps such as keeping reporters out of the Oval Office or limiting who can join the press pool.

Ari Fleischer, White House press secretary under President George W. Bush and a frequent Trump defender, wrote on social media: “Banning them from the WH is not the solution.” He said the move could make it easier for a future Democratic president to bar conservative-leaning outlets.

The ban closed out a week of other setbacks. The president’s son and his new wife, Bettina Trump, confirmed a report that a Russian businessman paid for a lavish two-day wedding afterparty in the Bahamas. Trump later told reporters on Friday that Donald Trump Jr. had reimbursed the businessman.

On Monday, the Supreme Court blocked the administration from adding new rules for mail ballots, and Trump criticized the conservative justices he put on the court. Kevin Warsh, his choice to lead the Federal Reserve, joined colleagues in voting to raise interest rates for the first time in three years, against the president’s wishes.

The president is dealing with falling approval ratings and the chance of Republican midterm losses, driven in part by the unpopular Iran war that has also pushed energy prices higher. Diesel hit a record last week, and AAA said regular gasoline reached a national average of $4.48 a gallon on Saturday.

A September New York Times/Siena Research poll found that 29% of surveyed Republicans believe the economy is in better shape than a year ago. A January Times poll showed that 73% of voters in the president’s party thought the economy was better positioned than a year earlier.

“Candidates all across the country are running on President Trump’s agenda, which includes historic tax cuts, increased wages, booming manufacturing, record investments, a Stock Market that has never done better, a secure border, safer communities, and so much more,” Cheung said in a statement.

Trump and his team are searching for wins. U.S. officials said that in August, the president asked advisers to find more foreign policy victories he could highlight before the midterms. On Friday, he announced a U.S.-Denmark agreement that allows more American forces in Greenland.

This coming week, he will speak at the United Nations General Assembly in New York and meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the White House. Trump views foreign policy as a defining part of his legacy, though polls show voters are more focused on issues at home.

He spent part of the weekend at Camp David, where he called concerns about data centers a “hoax” and announced a new “AI Force” similar to the Space Force, along with plans for an AI czar. People familiar with the matter said the next steps in the Iran war were on the agenda. He flew back to Washington on Saturday night with golfers Gary Player and Bryson DeChambeau.

On Sunday morning, he told Fox News he was close to a major decision on Iran. “My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up? They better behave,” Trump said.