about that? >> joining me now, "new york times" washington bureau correspondent eric lipton. politico senior washington correspondent anna palmer. and back with me "los angeles times" white house reporter eli stokols. eric, i'm going to start with you. this decision to hold the g7 at doral, what happened and why did the president make an about-face? he so rarely does that. >> i mean, it drew not only criticism from democrats in congress and legal experts who questioned if it violated the constitution, but a number of members of congress publicly and privately were telling mick mulvaney and the president himself that this was something that they could not defend. and i think it just left him in a more vulnerable position and he decided this was not worth trying to continue that fight. >> eli, it's so rare that the president does this sort of thing. what sort of pressure did he need to face from republicans and why in this moment? >> well, it's remarkable really that he needed to be told this