Washington (CNN) Inside the West Wing, multiple White House officials were watching Sam Nunberg's interviews on Monday about refusing to comply with special counsel Robert Mueller's grand jury subpoena with rapt attention.

Several say they are stunned by the former Trump campaign aide's freewheeling interviews, calling them "bizarre" and "nuts."

Aides have said that before they try to tune out daily developments on the Russia investigation -- the only way, they say, they'd be able to continue about the business of running the country.

But Nunberg's blanket phone interviews on television made that task difficult on Monday.

Nunberg called into cable news three times between 2:30 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. ET to explain his decision to refuse to appear before a grand jury.

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