Trump reportedly refused to sign a 2018 spending bill unless Paul Ryan let him build suspense over it on Twitter

Advertisement
Trump reportedly refused to sign a 2018 spending bill unless Paul Ryan let him build suspense over it on Twitter

donald trump paul ryan

Carlos Barria/Reuters

Donald Trump and Paul Ryan

Advertisement
  • President Donald Trump refused to sign a 2018 spending bill until former GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan agreed to let him first build suspense on Twitter, according to a new book by journalist Tim Alberta.
  • Trump reportedly chewed Ryan out over the bill because of its lack of border wall funding, but then signed the legislation after Ryan agreed to let him air his grievances on Twitter.
  • Alberta also documented how Ryan and other top Republicans dreaded Trump's often unexpected, insult-ridden and factually inaccurate tweetstorms.
  • Ryan reportedly responded to one early-morning presidential tweetstorm with "maniacal, punch-drunk laughter."
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump refused to sign a 2018 spending bill until former GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan agreed to let him first build suspense on Twitter, according to a new book by journalist Tim Alberta.

Trump chewed Ryan out over the bill because of its lack of border wall funding, but then signed the legislation after Ryan agreed to let him air his grievances on Twitter, Alberta wrote in "American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump," according to The Washington Post, which obtained an advanced copy.

After Trump signed the bill, Ryan praised the president on Twitter.

Alberta also documented how Ryan and other top Republicans dreaded Trump's often unexpected, insult-ridden and factually inaccurate tweetstorms.

Advertisement

Trump reportedly called his then-chief of staff, Reince Priebus, early on a Saturday morning in March 2017 to get his thoughts on a series of tweets he wrote accusing former President Barack Obama of surveilling his presidential campaign in 2016.

Read more: Trump's assistant Madeleine Westerhout was reportedly crying and 'inconsolable' on election night 2016 - but now says she'd do almost anything for Trump

"Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!" Trump tweeted in a series of Saturday morning messages, calling Obama a "bad (or sick) guy" in another tweet.

Priebus quickly picked up the phone and called Ryan to discuss the president's unsubstantiated claims.

"Paul, what the hell is going on? What the hell is he talking about?" Priebus asked his GOP ally, according to Alberta.

Advertisement

Ryan reportedly responded with "maniacal, punch-drunk laughter."

{{}}