Trump Gives Press The Slip Again, Gets Steak Dinner In Restaurant With Family [Video]

President-elect Trump has given his press pool the slip for the second time in one week, CNN is reporting.

The 70-year-old ditched the small group of journalists assigned to cover his movements Tuesday, sneaking out of his residence to grab a steak dinner with family. Around 6:15 p.m., spokeswoman Hope Hicks had told reporters that there it was a “lid” for the night, a figurative term that the President-elect would not be leaving the Trump Tower for the rest of the day.

Unknown to Hicks, Trump with his wife, Melania and children, Ivanka, Donald Jr., and Eric and their respective partners would later head out to a nearby restaurant, one hour and 15 minutes later, in a motorcade of 12 vehicles and an ambulance. Hicks would later reveal “I wasn’t aware of this movement…I would never leave the press in the dark.”

The Manhattan billionaire would turn up at the 21 Club, a high-end steakhouse. The same place that Trump enjoyed his wedding reception when he got married to his first wife, Ivana in 1977. The press pool had no idea that the President-elect was outside his residence until a Bloomberg staffer dining at the same restaurant tweeted a picture of Mr.Trump.

Trump’s surprise trip on Tuesday evening is the second time that he has broken protocol and not traveled with journalists. Last Thursday, the 70-year-old Republican refused to allow reporters travel with his motorcade and document his momentous visit to the White House. The White House Correspondents Association had called Mr. Trump’s actions “unacceptable.”

A press pool is meant to follow a sitting President or President-elect wherever he chooses to go. It is a close-knitted group of reporters representing the major news outlets, networks, radio stations, and wire services like Reuters and AP. Trump’s dumping of reporters for a second time has drawn sharp criticism from media circles.

CNN’s Sara Murray speaking to Anderson Cooper, Tuesday said it was yet another incident where the billionaire did not seem to understand the importance of his new title.

“This appears to be yet another misunderstanding of exactly how much gravity his new title as president-elect holds. If something, God forbids were to happen to him, that’s a matter not only for public record but also a matter of national security given that he is next in line to take the White House.”

In case of an emergency, the reporters are responsible for getting out information quickly. NBC’s Hallie Jackson said the press pool acts as a “conduit to the American people” informing and reassuring Americans, by letting them know Trump’s whereabouts and how he spends his time. Journalists say this is helpful information for those who elected him into office and alternatively those that did not vote for him.

Trump, a regular at the 21 Club, arrived at the historic restaurant to a standing ovation. He was recorded on video shaking hands and telling the patrons “we’ll get your taxes down, don’t worry about it.” He sat down at his favorite table 11, the same table frequented by President Gerald Ford and his wife. Andrew Testo who was at the steakhouse said seeing the President-elect up close was simply an awesome experience for him.

“There was a standing ovation when he came and left. He was with his whole family. It was like Sunday dinner with the Trumps, but on a Tuesday. It was awesome.”

The Trump journalists who headed to the restaurant after the Bloomberg reporter tweet had made the rounds found that the block had been cordoned off by police. Some of the reporters who made it past the barriers because they had NYC accreditation were told to wait outside the 21 Club. Journalists who were not so lucky had to wait down the street and had their view of the restaurant obscured by a dumpster.

A week after the election and Trump has still not held a press conference. The 70-year-old has also refused to travel with the press corps, maintaining his campaign stance of flying on a different plane. He has not also offered any media briefings about his transition efforts, a usual practice to acquaint the public about the new government.

For the second time in a week, Donald Trump has abandoned precedent and traveled without a press pool https://t.co/1gFtp2hSBi

— CNN International (@cnni) November 16, 2016

It looks like the Trump administration may be shaping up to be the most inaccessible government in American history.

Spokeswoman, Hope Hicks told reporters that Trump’s pool would eventually be endorsed once he was inaugurated in January.

Trump’s actions Tuesday are coming in the wake of disarray in his transition team camp with the demotion of Chris Christie and the controversial appointment of Steve Bannon, former head of Breitbart as chief strategist.

[Featured Image by Mark Ralston/AP Images]