A Saturday pool report indicated Donald Trump would be dining Saturday night with Ike Perlmutter and his wife, with the dinner closed to press. | AP Photo Trump's 'major meeting' on veterans affairs doesn't happen

A "major meeting" on veterans affairs slated for Friday evening that President Donald Trump publicly announced at the White House earlier in the day did not take place, according to pool reports.

Flanked by representatives of veterans groups, Trump said he would be meeting Friday evening at his Mar-a-Lago club with members of his veterans advisory board, including Marvel Entertainment CEO Ike Perlmutter.


Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, sitting to Trump's left, immediately indicated he would not be attending.

The White House did not respond to a question as to why the meeting did not occur.

A pool report late Friday confirmed that "the veterans meeting is not taking place tonight" and said officials assured that more information would be provided Saturday.

A Saturday pool report indicated Trump would be dining Saturday night with Perlmutter and his wife, with the dinner closed to media.

Perlmutter, an Israeli-American who served in the Israeli army and advises Trump on veterans affairs, has previously met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.

A later pool report said that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross would be joining the dinner. Mark Knoller, CBS News' longtime White House correspondent, later tweeted that Vice President Mike Pence had joined the group. Pence arrived at Mar-a-Lago at 8:35 p.m., according to a pool report.

At 11:25 p.m. Saturday, the White House provided a readout of the president's day, stating that Trump "spent the early morning and afternoon on issues concerning the Department of Veterans Affairs and the military."

"This evening President Trump had another meeting, including dinner, concerning the Department of Veterans Affairs and how to turn it around for the benefit of our great veterans," the readout added.

Trump asks VA @SecShulkin if he's going to Mar-a-Lago. Shulkin shakes his head. pic.twitter.com/aZyiBC9Gnj — POLITICO (@politico) March 17, 2017