Donald Trump Jr. told Congress “he was not aware of what role, if any, his father might have played in drafting an early explanation of the meeting that was widely criticized as misleading,” the Washington Post reports.

“Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE), did not respond to a request for comment after the hearing, but his office later distributed a memorandum of federal statutes prohibiting lying to Congress, suggesting them as something ‘to keep in mind regarding Donald Trump Jr.’s testimony today.’”

Mike Allen: “There’s a chance this Republican president, with a Republican Congress, ends the year with this list of accomplishments: increasing spending, permanently lifting the cap on debt, propping up Obamacare after failing to repeal it, and offering new protections to children of illegal immigrants.”

Bloomberg: “The breadth of the search goes against the narrative that has taken hold in Washington and on Wall Street that the Fed chair nomination is a two-horse race between National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn and current Fed Chair Janet Yellen, whose term expires in February.”

“Some of the other possible contenders include former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, Columbia University economist Glenn Hubbard and Stanford University professor John Taylor, one of the people familiar said. Lawrence Lindsey, a former economic adviser to President George W. Bush, has been discussed. Former US Bancorp CEO Richard Davis and John Allison, the former CEO of BB&T Corp., have also been considered.”

A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds that President Trump has 98% approval with Republicans who voted for him in both the primary and the general.

Axios: “Don’t underestimate Trump’s power to do whatever the hell he wants and still keep his base voters. If they stayed with him through Charlottesville and Access Hollywood, they’re not going anywhere over a Beltway deal. Trump has an almost magical hold on his voters.”

“Donald Trump is presiding over a Republican Party that is divided over his presidency and the central issues that powered his successful 2016 campaign,” according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.

Key finding: “Republicans who voted for Mr. Trump in the 2016 primary approve almost unanimously of the job he is doing as president, with some 98% backing him. But his approval rating among Republicans who voted for other primary candidates stands at 66%.”

“Asked how they felt about social changes of recent years that have made the U.S. more diverse and tolerant of different lifestyles, 63% of Trump primary voters said they were uneasy with the social changes, compared with 35% of Republicans who supported other GOP candidates in the primaries.”

Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team “has approached the White House about interviewing staffers who were aboard Air Force One when the initial misleading statement about Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer at Trump Tower was crafted,” CNN reports.

“The special counsel’s discussions with the White House are the latest indication that Mueller’s investigators are interested in the response to the Trump Tower meeting… Mueller’s questions could go to the issue of intent and possible efforts to conceal information during an obstruction of justice investigation.”

Politico: “In calls with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Thursday morning, Trump raved about the positive news coverage it had received, according to people familiar with the calls, and he seemed very pleased with his decision. Trump specifically mentioned TV segments praising the deal and indicated he’d been watching in a call with Schumer, two people said. And he was jovial in a call with Pelosi and agreed to send a tweet she asked for about the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, these people said, while also mentioning the attention the deal had gotten. He indicated to both leaders he would be willing to work together again.”

Said one person familiar with the calls: “He seemed super upbeat.”

For members: Why Trump Cut a Deal with Democrats

Robert Dallek: “Eight months into Donald Trump’s presidency, it is impossible to imagine him unifying the country behind his leadership. To be sure, the issues today are vastly different from those Roosevelt faced. Indeed, the calmer waters Trump sails on as president—calmer by any measure, for all the challenges—should make the task easier. He inherited an economy that was in decent shape and a country that faced no existential threats from the outside, whatever the ongoing dangers posed by terrorism.”

“Instead, Trump offers a master class in how not to be president. He has deepened skepticism about his suitability for the highest office by raging at opponents, decrying the media as enemies of the American people, dismissing as disloyal those who are in any way critical, and offering distorted versions of reality on virtually every subject, starting with the claim that the first 100 days of his administration were the most successful in history. His ignorant and offhand approach to foreign policy—first and foremost, his seemingly deliberate attempts to weaken and even threaten NATO—has dismayed America’s allies and emboldened its enemies. A special counsel has been appointed to investigate Russian interference in the election, reminding Americans of the process that drove Richard Nixon from office.”

“Trump would do well to study Roosevelt and, surely, Lincoln, along with other presidents, to grasp how they sought (or failed to seek) broad popular unity. It says something fundamental about the man that no one imagines he would actually do this. The problem is not just that it would take work. The larger problem is that he has no interest in the goal.”

Mike Allen: “It’s now possible that Trump’s biggest legislative wins this year will be more spending and raising the debt cap — the exact opposite of what Tea Party Republicans came to D.C. to do.”

“This was a seminal moment for Republican congressional leaders. They left the Oval having watched the titular leader of their party side with Dems, right in front of them. They watched their carefully laid plans — using Harvey funding as leverage to push through a long-term debt ceiling extension — blow up in their faces.”

Said one GOP official: “He fucked us.”

For members: Why Trump Cut a Deal with Democrats

New York Times: “Mr. Trump often invites his daughter Ivanka Trump into meetings to signal their conclusion — or to keep his interlocutors off balance. When Ms. Trump entered the office toward the end of the discussion on Wednesday, ostensibly to discuss tax reform, Republicans in the room reacted with astonishment and annoyance.”

“Mr. McConnell, who is barely on speaking terms with the president, quietly seethed, according to two people familiar with the situation. He breezed past other lawmakers and staff members in purse-lipped silence when he returned to the Capitol.”

CNN has learned that President Trump “will host the members of his Cabinet at the secluded government-owned retreat in Maryland starting Friday. They are expected to discuss a wide range of issues, spanning from the administration’s legislative strategy for tax reform to the growing nuclear crisis in North Korea.”

“A source familiar said because of logistics and limited lodging space, half of the Cabinet will travel to the 125-acre retreat on Friday and stay overnight. The rest of the Cabinet will travel there on Saturday, when a full Cabinet meeting will take place. The first half of the Cabinet will then return back to Washington Saturday while the second half stays the night and returns Sunday.”