Donald Trump’s Busy Day: Lunch With Mike Pence Is The Only Thing On The President’s Schedule For Monday

Trump has been criticized for a schedule that usually starts at around noon and is heavy on time to watch television and go onto Twitter.

Donald Trump apparently isn’t big on Mondays.

As White House correspondent Manu Raju reported, the president has a very light schedule on Monday, as a lunch with Vice President Mike Pence the only thing that is actually on his schedule. The apparent absence of any other work drew some interest from the internet, with many criticizing Trump for his lack of work despite campaign-trail promises to be one of the hardest-working presidents ever if he were elected.

Monday is not the only easy day on Trump’s schedule of late. White House correspondents have noted that the president often is light on actual work on his schedule, including a day last week in which his first obligation was at 11:30 a.m. and there were only two other appointments — lunch with Betsy DeVos and a Hanukkah ceremony in the late afternoon.

As Politico reported, Trump’s schedule is very heavy on what White House staff has taken to calling “executive time,” which is actually unstructured time that Trump usually spends watching television, calling friends on the phone, and tweeting.

Politico conducted a deep review of Trump’s schedule, finding that he appears to be averse to early mornings and big on things that bring attention to himself.

“But the president’s official commitments last week began no earlier than 11 a.m. according to the schedules obtained by POLITICO, and on Tuesday — in the midst of a potential serial bomber and two weeks ahead of the midterm elections — they didn’t start until 1 p.m.,” the report noted.

“Trump’s work activity also reflects much more time spent on the performative aspects of the job, like signing ceremonies and media interviews, than on the actual work of policymaking.”

Donald Trump’s light Monday comes after what was one of the most trying weeks of his presidency. On Friday, Robert Mueller’s team filed a pair of court statements that shed new light on the Russia investigation and gave the most direct link to the president. Trump spent the latter part of the week and weekend attacking Mueller, saying it is time for the Russia investigation to close up shop.

Things were not much better on the economic front for Trump, with the major indices all dropping 4.5 percent for the week amid concerns over Trump’s trade wars with China. While economic experts have long said that presidents do not have much an effect on the stock market, Trump’s tendency to take credit for the rising stock market has led to criticism now that it is falling.

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