I believe policy decisions are made by "staffers" at the WH, the President is basically a figurehead, someone you hope can read the teleprompter. The staffers "bake" the information so only one decision is obvious, and the President complies. This can be circular where the staffers try and divine what the President wants to be true, and spin the information to make it so.
I saw this at work, frequently, with few exceptions. The underlings trying to get promoted would spin facts to fit what they thought the VP really wanted to hear. Some did the opposite, and told the truth as best they could, they didn't thrive.