Trump's big press conference with Justin Trudeau was missing a question about the elephant in the room

President Donald Trump managed to avoid questions during a joint press conference about concerns that embattled National Security Advisor Michael Flynn misled Trump officials about his communications with Russia's ambassador.

The Washington Post published a story last week which said that Flynn may have lied to then-Vice President-elect Mike Pence about whether the adviser discussed US-Russia sanctions with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before Trump took office, raising concerns about his future in the White House.

But despite front-page treatment in newspapers like The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, the American journalists Trump called on during his joint press-conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did not confront Trump about the embattled national security adviser.

Scott Thurman from ABC 7 Sinclair asked a broad question about the "philosophical differences" between Trump and Trudeau, while the Daily Caller's White House reporter Kaitlan Collins asked Trump what he saw as the largest national security threat the US.

A number of reporters noted the absence of a question about Flynn, which some journalists like ABC's Jon Karl attempted to ask Trump as he left the press conference:

Some prominent former Democratic staffers were also quick to criticize the questions at the press conference.

This isn't the first time that the new administration has been scrutinized for its selection of questioners.

Trump's team faced some criticism during the president's first official press conference for only taking questions from outlets owned by Rupert Murdoch, who has deep personal and financial ties with Trump. White House press secretary Sean Spicer has attempted to include smaller news outlets in press briefings, including local outlets, and some questioners who supported Trump during the campaign.