Donald Trump had on Thursday shelved his
guiding mantra – never back down, never
apologize – and did what he has
refused to do in public in more than a year of campaigning.
He expressed regret.
Trump, reading from prepared remarks
Thursday night, acknowledged that he sometimes says "the wrong thing"
in an astonishing act of contrition that signaled Trump's willingness to break
from his characteristic brashness and bare-knuckles style that carried him to
victory in the Republican primaries, but risks dooming him in the general
election.
"Sometimes, in the heat of
debate and speaking on a multitude of issues, you don't choose the right words
or you say the wrong thing. I have done that. And believe it or not, I regret
it. And I do regret it, particularly where it may have caused personal pain.
Too much is at stake for us to be consumed with these issues," Trump told
supporters here.
He added: "But one thing I can
promise you is this: I will always tell you the truth."
Trump's remarks came on the heels of
recent controversies that ranged from feuding with the parents of a slain
Muslim-American soldier to suggesting "Second Amendment people" could
act to stop Hillary Clinton from appointing a liberal Supreme Court.
Trump's public expression of regret
also followed his decision earlier this week to shake up his campaign
leadership, installing a new campaign manager and bringing on a campaign CEO.
CNN learnt from a Trump’s senior adviser
the speech was only just written in recent days, suggesting the influence of
Trump's fresh team of top advisers.
While Trump's remarks Thursday
marked a seismic change in the brash billionaire's style, it is still not clear
whether the change was the mark of a lasting shift in strategy and tone.
Trump has repeatedly hinted at
striking a more inclusive and presidential tone, but has also said time and
again that he does not want to "change" or "pivot."
"I am who I am. It's me. I
don't want to change. Everyone talks about, 'Oh are you going to pivot?' I
don't want to pivot. You have to be you. If you start pivoting you are not
being honest with people," Trump told local Wisconsin station WKDT this
week.
The Clinton campaign immediately
expressed doubt over the sincerity of Trump's contrition, calling it
"teleprompter regret" and pressed Trump to go further.
"Donald Trump literally started
his campaign by insulting people. He has continued to do so through each of the
428 days from then until now, without shame or regret," Clinton
spokeswoman Christina Reynolds said in a statement. "We learned tonight
that his speechwriter and teleprompter knows he has much for which he should
apologize. But that apology tonight is simply a well-written phrase until he
tells us which of his many offensive, bullying and divisive comments he regrets
-- and changes his tune altogether."
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