Donald Trump's campaign is undergoing personnel changes, but The Washington Post reports that the candidate is sticking to his primary strategy, despite pleas from Republican leaders to change his tone and act more presidential.
Steve Bannon, executive chairman of Breitbart News, is the Trump campaign's new chief executive, CNN reports. Kellyanne Conway, one of Trump's senior advisers and pollsters, is his new campaign manager, replacing Paul Manafort who will continue to act as campaign chairman. Joining them is former Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes, who The New York Times reports is advising Trump ahead of this fall's debates with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
"I want to win," Trump said on Tuesday, during an interview with The Wall Street Journal, which broke the story about Bannon and Conway. "That's why I'm bringing on fantastic people who know how to win and love to win."
By picking two conservative media moguls and replacing a campaign manager who tried to rein in his worst tendencies, Trump is returning to the ratings-focused campaign style that won him the primaries. "Let Trump Be Trump" was former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski's mantra, but Manafort tried to turn him into a more traditional candidate, and he refused.
But the Post said it would also appear that the candidate is fixated on his core supporters, who never left him, and writing off efforts to broaden that base. It cited a Gallup poll that showed Trump's support dwindling among uncommitted voters leaning his way following the GOP convention.
Trump's controversial rhetoric has nabbed him incredible ratings, crowds, and attention on social media, but in recent weeks it has seemingly backfired on him, and he's dropped behind Clinton in polls from key swing states.
"I don't know why we're not leading by a lot," Trump said in Florida earlier this month, according to Politico. "Maybe crowds don't make the difference."
That was a surprising admission from the Republican candidate, who previously touted the size of the crowds at his rallies, and seemed to rely more on television ratings and crowd size than polls as a measure of his campaign's success.
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