President Donald Trump made an unexpected call into C-SPAN's evening broadcast Monday, extending a series of surprise appearances after Republicans' midterm election defeat.

"It looks like we've got a call from the White House," host Mimi Geerges told viewers as Trump joined the debut of "Washington Journal Primetime."

Trump congratulated Geerges on the launch before taking questions on immigration, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Iran war.

Asked what he watches on C-SPAN, Trump said he follows viewer call-ins to gauge public sentiment.

"I like to watch the call-ins because it gives me a little of an indication of where we are," he said.

The unannounced, eight-minute call followed another unexpected appearance earlier Monday, when Trump entered the White House briefing room alongside UFC CEO Dana White. Reporters were summoned so quickly that aides did not have time to attach the presidential seal to the podium, according to Reuters.

It was Trump's first briefing room appearance in 198 days, according to a White House pool report. With the press secretary post vacant, Trump joked about offering White the job, to which the UFC chief declined.

Trump said he had been having "a very bad press day," as he floated White as his next press secretary.

Last Wednesday, a day after Republicans suffered substantial midterm losses, Trump also abruptly invited reporters to the construction site of his White House ballroom for his first public event since the election.

Trump spent more than 20 minutes discussing White House construction and renovation projects, including the ballroom's Corinthian columns, marble flooring and the helipad, before turning to the election results during questions from reporters.

When asked whether he regretted how his campaign had ended, Trump distanced himself from the Republican losses.

"If I were on the ballot, we would have won," he said.

Democrats won control of both the House and Senate in the Nov. 3 elections, dealing Trump a major political setback and setting up a divided government when the new Congress takes office in January.

Trump has long favored direct telephone contact with the media, including live calls to Fox News programs such as "Fox & Friends" during his first term.

CBS News previously reported that Trump personally arranged one such television appearance, while The Associated Press has documented his habit of contacting journalists directly by cellphone to pitch stories and react to live coverage.

— CNBC's Daniel Mangan contributed to this story.