President Donald Trump was up early Friday and apparently watching MSNBC's "Morning Joe," which he insists is a "bad show" he never watches, and tweeting about a report he didn't like.
Co-host Willie Geist commented on recent reports that showed how John Kelly, who took over three weeks ago as White House chief of staff, had instituted new limits on the information that crosses the president's desk -- but his influence only goes so far.
"Was it always too much to expect that Gen. John Kelly, as great as an American he is, is able to control Donald Trump?" Geist said. "Whatever that means -- to control what goes out through his Twitter feed, to keep the reins on him at a big political rally in Phoenix or at the press conference in Trump Tower."
Political analyst Mark Halperin said veterans of previous White House staffs laughed at the new rules being implemented, eight months into Trump's presidency.
"This is basic stuff about flow to the president and controlling access to the Oval Office," Halperin said. "They can change the system, but Kelly can't control the president watching TV. He can't control the president tweeting. He's just -- he can't. He's not going to try, and the reality is, fixing the process will help, but the president dominates the situation through his own communication."
As if on cue, the president weighed in on the report about 10 minutes after it aired.
"General John Kelly is doing a fantastic job as Chief of Staff," Trump tweeted. "There is tremendous spirit and talent in the W.H. Don't believe the Fake News."
Later in the segment, Republican strategist Susan Del Percio faulted the administration for its failure to fill hundreds of jobs in the executive branch -- and the president seemingly responded to her criticism, as well.
