Donald Trump tweeting less due to 'cutting down on cable TV'

President reportedly tunes into cable TV first thing in the morning and retires to his White House residence in the early evenings to watch TV in his bathrobe

Some media commentators have claimed his TV fixation is a consequence of his long-running career in entertainment where success is measured by ratings and media coverage (AFP/Getty Images)

Donald Trump has something of a love-hate relationship with cable TV. While the President is known for his penchant for the stuff, his angry Twitter tirades often appear to follow what he has seen on the box.

As such, the former reality TV star has reportedly ended his habit of watching former favourite MSNBC show Morning Joe after rising from his slumber. One of Mr Trump’s unnamed aides claimed this is the reason why the President has been sending fewer early morning tweets in recent days.

Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski are long-time friends of Mr Trump and he speaks to them frequently. However, they have been critical of some of his early moves.

Brzezinski, the veteran TV host, told Associated Press Mr Trump has made similar claims of avoiding the TV during his presidential campaign.

"Then I would see him and Joe talking and he would say 'Joe, you know I really watch every day,"' she told the publication.

Scarborough, a former Republican congressman, has an on-off relationship with the President. He has massively oscillated between being effusive and rebuking him. The co-hosts have denied claims they helped elect Mr Trump via their coverage of him.

Morning Joe is well-established as one of the billionaire property developer’s favourite shows. More broadly speaking, his television habit has been widely documented, with previous reports the President, who is said not to read books, begins each day in the White House by tuning into Cable TV.

Some media commentators have claimed his TV fixation is a consequence of his long-running career in entertainment where success is measured by ratings and media coverage. He, of course, hosted The Celebrity Apprentice for many years before announcing his presidential bid.

His TV obsession sharply contrasts with President Barack Obama, who penned a critically acclaimed memoir of his life and frequently talked about books which had influenced him. Back in 2009, Mr Obama said he did not watch cable TV because “it feels like WWF wrestling”.

According to an unflattering expose by the New York Times earlier in the month, Mr Trump retires to his White House residence in the early evenings to watch TV in his bathrobe. The report, which claimed the President marked up negative news stories with a black sharpie, elicited an angry Twitter tirade from Mr Trump. He suggested the publication has written “total fiction” about him and fabricated their sources.

White House Press Secretary, Sean Spicer, also weighed in to assert that the President “definitely doesn’t wear” a bathrobe, prompting a torrent of memes on social media of Mr Trump donning a bathrobe.