Republican frontrunner Donald Trump’s convention czar reassured top party officials Thursday that the billionaire’s bombastic tactics are part of a calculated onstage role, the Associated Press reported.
In a recording of the meeting with Republican National Committee members obtained by AP, senior Trump aide Paul Manafort said Trump would start to reveal “the real person” behind his outlandish stage presence.
“When he’s out on the stage, when he’s talking about the kinds of things he’s talking about on the stump, he’s projecting an image that’s for that purpose,” he said. “You’ll start to see more depth of the person, the real person. You’ll see a real different guy.”
While some committee officials welcomed the revelation, others said it raised concerns about Trump’s authenticity as a candidate, AP reported.
Ben Carson, a Trump surrogate working on campaign outreach, told officials, “He’s trying to moderate. He’s getting better.”
The candidate, for his part, said in a Thursday sit-down with “The Today Show” he would soon pivot to a more “presidential” demeanor.
“It’s easier for me to be presidential than for me to be doing what I’ve been doing for the last, really, nine months,” he said. “But at the right time, I will be so presidential, you will be so bored. You will say, can’t he have a little bit more energy?”
