In recent days, we had the first snow of the winter here in the Washington DC. On Monday, the First Lady Melania Trump will be presented with the official White House Christmas tree.
The following day, President Trump will take part in the traditional 'Turkey Pardoning' event ahead of Thanksgiving.
We're very much heading towards the festive season, but according to reports there is no holiday cheer at the White House. President Trump is said to be fuming over the results of the midterm elections.
Midterm elections
The party of the sitting US President traditionally loses seats in midterm elections and, as pollsters predicted, Republicans lost control of the House of Representatives.
It wasn't a total disaster for them. They did manage to retain the Senate and even flipped a few Democratic seats.
These were the positives that President Trump tried to focus on in his post-election press conference, but he couldn't contain his anger, lashing out at the journalists in the room.
His clash with CNN's Jim Acosta resulted in the reporter losing his press credentials and the White House being sued to get them reinstated.
Visit to France
Then, it was time for President Trump to travel to Paris for the Armistice commemorations. Originally, he was supposed to visit Ireland on his way to France. The White House cancelled the trip citing scheduling difficulties.
There was a belief, however, that the real reason may have been concerns about the optics of President Trump playing golf in Doonbeg days after a bad result in the midterms.
Perhaps a round of golf in County Clare would have been good for President Trump's mood. He clearly needed to be cheered up.
According to the Washington Post, while on Air Force One on his way to Paris, the British Prime Minister Theresa May called President Trump to congratulate him on the election results.
The article claims that the US President, rather than thanking her for kind words, berated her over Brexit, trade and Iran.
When he arrived in France, things didn't get much better for President Trump. He was widely criticised for cancelling a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial near Paris.
His helicopter couldn't take off because of heavy rain. The President later tweeted that he wanted to drive to the event but was advised against it.
By the way, when the helicopter couldn’t fly to the first cemetery in France because of almost zero visibility, I suggested driving. Secret Service said NO, too far from airport & big Paris shutdown. Speech next day at American Cemetery in pouring rain! Little reported-Fake News!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 13, 2018
As always with President Trump, the best way to gauge his mood is to look at his Twitter feed.
On his return from France, he slammed his host President Emmanuel Macron.
He criticised him over his low approval ratings, France's high unemployment rate, defence spending and unfair trading practices, using wine sales as an example.
On Trade, France makes excellent wine, but so does the U.S. The problem is that France makes it very hard for the U.S. to sell its wines into France, and charges big Tariffs, whereas the U.S. makes it easy for French wines, and charges very small Tariffs. Not fair, must change!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 13, 2018
Mueller investigation
Also in his Twitter firing line over the last week were election recounts in Florida, which President Trump branded as "fraud", and the Robert Mueller Russia Investigation.
He frequently criticises the Mueller probe, but it's really been stepped up in recent days.
He accused investigators of going "absolutely nuts. They are screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want. They are a disgrace to our Nation".
The inner workings of the Mueller investigation are a total mess. They have found no collusion and have gone absolutely nuts. They are screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want. They are a disgrace to our Nation and don’t...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 15, 2018
There are reports that Robert Mueller is nearing the end of his investigation and a final report, or at least further indictments, could be on the way in the coming weeks. That's something that will do little to improve President Trump's current mood.
And it looks like his negativity may be spreading. The office of the First Lady Melania Trump issued a rare statement in recent days castigating a White House member of staff.
Her target was the Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel and in an unprecedented move, Mrs Trump's spokeswoman said: "It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the honour of serving in this White House."
Ms Ricardel had reportedly clashed with members of the First Lady's staff. Unsurprisingly, she has now been removed from her position and will take up another role within the administration.
On Thursday, millions of people will celebrate Thanksgiving here in the US. It's traditionally a time when Americans gather and tell each other what they are thankful for.
It's a list that may not be very long for Donald Trump this year, as he prepares for the end of the Mueller investigation and the realities of a Democrat-controlled House.
