1. President Trump met China’s special envoy at the White House.

Before the meeting, above, Mr. Trump said that the two countries were headed toward an agreement that might be “the biggest deal ever made.” There had also been hints that a summit meeting would be announced between Mr. Trump and President Xi Jinping of China. None was.

The talks are expected to continue for weeks.

And separately, a day after a Times report revealed frustrations from some investigators who have said the attorney general failed to adequately portray their findings, the department defended William Barr’s handling of the special counsel’s report, saying that it had to be scrubbed of sensitive information.