Mr. Trump, in the interview, argued that it took “more talent to do freethinking rallies” than to stick to a script, noting that he had to remember to make points about jobs and immigration while also engaging his audiences. He said that he was adjusting to his latest style of communicating, and that it sometimes felt at odds with his desire to entertain the crowds at his rallies. Yet as he mulls important shifts on immigration, he is still making muddled statements and remains far from clear on policy details.
There are signs of change. In an interview last month, shortly after the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, issued scathing comments about Mrs. Clinton’s email practices as secretary of state, Mr. Trump said he could not “spend more than five minutes talking about her emails at my rallies, because people will lose interest, and you have to talk about other things to keep their attention.” But in the interview this week, he said he needed to “give people a mix of things at the rallies” and wanted “to be more on message.”
“Now we’re getting to Labor Day, and things will be different,” he said.
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