Donald Trump's controversy-plagued re-election bid tends to find new challenges, much to the delight of his opponent in the Nov. election, Joe Biden. The president, who is currently facing a sexual misconduct allegation from journalist and advice columnist E. Jean Carroll is also distressed over something else.

This weekend, Trump looked visibly distressed over the adverse results that emanated from the story published on The Atlantic that accuses the president of calling Americans who died in war as "losers" and "suckers." Since the story was published earlier this week, Trump has been vigorously denying that he made the comments, lauding what he has done for the military.

Two people who spoke with the president said it was a clear indication of how much the story had affected him, sparking fear of him losing the military support. The story first surfaced online on Thursday, leaving Trump outraged during his flight from Pennsylvania.

He urged his aides to deny the allegations and even sent his chief of staff Mark Meadows to the back of Air Force One to tell reporters that the story was false. His riled-up reaction prompted officials to initiate the pushback effort that kicked off on Thursday night.

If the conversations he had over the weekend are anything to go by, Trump appeared more deflated than outraged at the allegations placed against him. The weekend at the White House was relatively quiet until Trump announced a Labor Day news conference.

Just when it looked like the story was quieting down, the president accused top Pentagon military leaders of being under the obligation of defense contractors. This was quite surprising given that he was trying to garner support from those people.

Trump has been privately upset about the brass at the Pentagon not coming to his defense in the wake of The Atlantic's story, and this reflected in his response, CNN reported. Meadows claimed on Tuesday morning that the president wasn't referencing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, or Defense Secretary Mark Esper when he made the comments though it is unclear who he was referencing instead.

The president is accusing some Pentagon officials and senior career politicians of not showing interest in putting an end to their "endless wars," a White House official told CNN. Trump stands with American soldiers who serve on the front lines, and the nation's great generals and is bent on ending the conflicts to bring American troops home, the official added.