"He wanted Reince ... to explain to him Wisconsin's obsession with the animal"

“He wanted Reince — resident White House badger historian, apparently — to explain to him Wisconsin’s obsession with the animal, how the little critters function and behave, what kind of food they like, and how aggressive or deadly they could be when presented with perceived existential threats.

“Trump also wanted to know if the badger had a ‘personality’ or if it was boring. What kind of damage could a badger to do a person with its flashy, sharp claws?

“An obviously enthralled president would stare at Priebus as the aide struggled for sufficiently placating answers, all the while trying to gently veer the conversation back to whether we were going to do a troop surge in Afghanistan or strip millions of Americans of healthcare coverage.”