As the midterms have ended - that is, most midterms have ended, with a few still undecided - Trump had a quieter week, though internal strife within the White House, disputes over the appointment of Deputy AG Matthew Whitaker, and the Mueller investigation all added drama.

On Tuesday, a source claimed that Trump has answered written questions that Special Counsel Robert Mueller submitted as part of his ongoing 2016 Russia probe, and that Trump may return them soon. Early on Saturday, Trump confirmed that he answered the questions "very easily" and without help from his lawyers, though his legal team is presumably reviewing the responses before returning them to the Mueller investigation. Trump also hinted that the questions could be turned over to Mueller as soon as next week. Mueller asked these written questions of Trump after months of protracted negotiations over how he would interview the President. Trump's lawyers strongly advised him not to give oral testimony. Trump is also facing legal challenges over his appointment of Acting AG Matthew Whitaker to replace AG Jeff Sessions at the Justice Department, as many view it as his attempt to stifle Mueller's investigation. Trump meanwhile has continued to attack the legitimacy of the investigation, saying its "inner workings" are a "total mess" via Tweet on Thursday.

Speaking of total messes, this week the Trump White House again dismissed staff - this time at the behest of First Lady Melania Trump. Mrs. Trump apparently demanded the dismissal of deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel. A spokeswoman for the first lady, Stephanie Grisham, said, "It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House." CNN reported that no one else in the White House, including Trump, knew that Grisham was commenting publicly on the matter, and Trump had made a media appearance with Ricardel a scant hour beforehand. The nature of the feud between Mrs. Trump and Ms. Ricardel is unclear, but it appears to have arisen during Mrs. Trump's trip to Africa earlier this year. Meanwhile, there were rumors that other White House officials are on thin ice, including Chief of Staff John Kelly. Trump's administration has had a notable number of resignations and firings.

Meanwhile, the court battle over Trump's asylum proclamation is still pending further action. Troops positioned at the border to discourage entry have reached their peak of 5,900. The migrant caravan itself has arrived in Tijuana, near the US border.

Trump is traveling to California to meet with victims of the Camp Fire on Saturday, which has thus far killed 74 people and left 1,000 missing. Trump's visit will be controversial, as he continues to claim that the fires were caused by forest mismanagement. Trump did concede that climate change might have contributed "a little bit." Californians, firefighters, and forest management professionals have criticized Trump's comments as ignorant and insensitive.

At the end of the week, China submitted a list of all the concessions it was willing to make to keep trade tensions to a minimum. Trump said it was "unacceptable" that four or five key items did not appear on the list, but also said there may be no need to add more tariffs. Trump has threatened to place tariffs on all Chinese imports.

Last but not least, Trump also announced his support for a bipartisan criminal justice reform bill, which would allow earlier releases for prisoners held on low-level drug offenses. It's a promising start for reform advocates, but does not go as far as many want.