Something Better To Do? President Donald Trump Has 'Skipped Out On All But 12 Of His Daily Intelligence Briefings' Since Taking Office

Round two for Donald Trump, but his crucial daily briefings are still on the back burner.

Since January, the president has attended just 12 intelligence briefings – a surprisingly low number even by his first-term standards, sparking fresh concerns over his lack of attention to critical updates, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

Despite dealing with high-stakes diplomacy in other countries, the commander-in-chief has mostly ghosted the intel community’s most important briefing tool – which offers the intelligence community's overview of the nation’s most urgent national security threats.

Reports say Trump received only two in-person intelligence updates per month in the first quarter of 2025 before switching to weekly briefings in April.

During his first term, the president averaged two per week – the same as Joe Biden.

The unusually low number this time around has alarmed many in and around the intelligence community, who were already wary of Trump’s act-first, assess-later style of leadership.

Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement: "It’s sadly clear that President Trump doesn’t value the expertise of and dangerous work performed by our intelligence professionals each and every day, and unfortunately, it leaves the American people increasingly vulnerable to threats we ought to see coming."

The irregular schedule comes as Trump is attempting to broker peace in Gaza and Ukraine, revive nuclear talks with Iran, and manage rising threats from rivals like Russia and China.

Not every president sticks to the same briefing routine – and Trump isn’t totally off-script compared to past leaders.

However, he's reportedly been skipping reading "the book," the vital, labor-intensive intelligence summary compiled daily by analysts and delivered five days a week to him and top aides.

Add to that his hit-or-miss attendance at in-person briefings – key moments where presidents get classified updates on global crises and covert operations – and critics say Trump may be flying blind while the world burns.

The president reportedly received just two in-person intelligence briefings per month from January to March, then shifted to weekly briefings in April and May.

Former intelligence officials say these briefings are crucial for guiding high-stakes diplomacy by revealing foreign governments' intentions.

While White House officials insist he stays informed through regular contact with national security leaders, former intelligence officials warn that skipping the President’s Daily Brief (PDB) limits direct exposure to unbiased intelligence.

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said: "The president is constantly apprised of classified briefings and is regularly in touch with his national security team.

"The entire intelligence community actively informs President Trump in real time about critical national security developments."

They also expressed concern that fewer top officials may now have access to the PDB, raising questions about whether vital information is reaching Trump unfiltered.

Trump’s first term saw high turnover in his national security team – a trend continuing with the recent ousting of National Security Adviser Mike Waltz.

Experts say trained intelligence briefers are vital for delivering unfiltered, nuanced information to the president, which may be lacking with Trump’s reduced briefing schedule.

While briefing habits vary by president – George W. Bush preferred daily in-person sessions, Obama often read the PDB book, and Biden uses it to spark policy discussions – Trump has been known to skip reading the PDB and responds better to visual summaries and storytelling.