In The Art of the Deal, Donald Trump wrote, “I never get too attached to one deal or one approach… I keep a lot of balls in the air.” That everything-is-negotiable strategy may be commonplace in the business world, but it’s unique in the realm of presidential politics, where getting labeled a “flip flopper” is usually problematic.
Trump is testing the conventional wisdom. In the week since he became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, he’s flip-flopped on four major policy positions. The shifts suggest Trump believes making “great deals,” even at the cost of inconsistency, will ultimately be a winning strategy this November.
Here’s a rundown:
Minimum wage
The policy change: Trump was opposed to raising the federal minimum wage before he was for it. Last week, he told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer he’s now “open to doing something with it.” That’s a break from what he said last year, when he said he “would not” raise the wage floor if elected president.
“I’m actually looking at [raising the minimum wage] because I am very different from most Republicans,” Trump said last week. “You have to have something that you can live on.”
Why? It could be smart politics — recent polling indicates minimum wage increases are supported by upwards of 60 percent of Americans and 80 percent of business executives.
Taxes
The policy change: The tax plan Trump put forth last year included massive giveaways for the rich and not much for everyone else. But asked about that plan on CNBC last week, Trump said, “I’m not necessarily a huge fan.”
“I’m so much more into the middle class who have just been absolutely forgotten in our country,” he added, signaling his plan might be in for a major overhaul. Early indications suggest that his revised plan will still include significant tax breaks for the rich, however.
Why? Trump’s original plan would’ve cost an absurd amount — about $10 trillion over a decade. His new plan would reduce the overall cost by more than $3 trillion.
Muslim ban
The policy change: When Donald Trump first proposed banning non-citizens Muslims from the United States last December, he repeatedly said “we have no choice” but to implement a ban “until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on.”
But during a Wednesday radio appearance, Trump softened his tone considerably, saying the ban “hasn’t been called for yet” and is “just a suggestion.”
Why? A number of leaders, such as London’s new Muslim mayor Sadiq Khan, have recently publicly shared their concerns about the prospect of a Trump presidency. Trump might see walking back one of his most controversial policy proposals as a way to quell some of international negativity that’s increasingly surrounding his campaign.
Entitlements
The policy change: During primary season, Trump repeatedly promised to protect major entitlement programs Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid from cuts. But that changed this week.
On Wednesday, Sam Clovis, chief policy adviser for the Trump campaign, said, “After the administration has been in place, then we will start to take a look at all of the programs, including entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare… We’ll start taking a hard look at those to start seeing what we can do in a bipartisan way.”
Why? One theory is that a newfound openness to cutting entitlements might help Trump ultimately win the endorsement of noted entitlement hater Paul Ryan. If that is indeed Trump’s strategy, it appears to be working.