Former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer called for President Trump Donald John TrumpSteele Dossier sub-source was subject of FBI counterintelligence probe Pelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Trump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance MORE to exhibit more "mental discipline."

In an op-ed published Wednesday in The Wall Street Journal, Fleischer — who served under former President George W. Bush — sought to grade Trump's performance during his "first quarter" in office in football terms.

"He deserves credit for moving the ball down the field over several different drives," he wrote. "But he has committed so many unnecessary roughness penalties, along with giving up one huge fumble, that he may have to gain 200 yards just to score one touchdown."

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Fleischer admitted Trump has to put up with biased referees, noting the press "loves to blow the whistle on him."

"But face it, he earned more than a few of those penalties," he wrote. "The result is that despite many first-year accomplishments, opinion polls show the president isn’t getting credit for them."

Fleischer said the White House should be concerned that even if the "economy roars back and middle-class wages rise, it won’t help the Republicans or Mr. Trump."

He pointed to polls showing low approval ratings to say the president's words and tweets appear to be wearing people down.

Fleischer said normally a first quarter like the one Trump had "would be worth a few touchdowns." He pointed to the recent tax legislation Trump signed and the economy's expansion as successes.

"But often after Mr. Trump runs a good play and picks up yardage, in comes a penalty flag, and back again he goes," he wrote. "Instead of running a presidency defined by policies, actions and laws, he frequently has made himself too hot to handle."

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Part of the political game includes being tough and "hitting opponents," he said.

"But the lesson of the first quarter is that avoiding penalties is just as important," he wrote. "Mr. Trump is capable of scoring a lot more points. As any head coach would advise, however, it won’t happen if he doesn’t show more mental discipline on the field."

Earlier this month, Fleischer warned that Democrats "would kill" the GOP in the 2018 midterm elections unless Trump does something to boost his popularity with voters outside his base.