Chris Wallace: Trump may have realized he's in a hole, so 'stop digging'

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Chris Wallace: Polls come down to who people trust more to handle coronavirus, race relations

‘Fox News Sunday’ anchor Chris Wallace weighs in on the Fox News poll showing Biden leading Trump in the states Michigan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania on ‘America’s Newsroom.’

As President Trump continues to trail former Vice President Joe Biden in the polls, he seems to have shifted his strategy and decided to take a more disciplined approach in handling the coronavirus pandemic, "Fox News Sunday" host Chris Wallace said Friday.

In an interview on "America's Newsroom," Wallace said that while a lot can change in the 102 days until November's election, overwhelming data in favor of Biden in key swing states may have lit a fire under the president.

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"But, at this point, if you look at the internals when it comes to – in all of these states – who do you trust more to handle the coronavirus? Who do you trust more to handle race relations? By overwhelming numbers, double digits, people in these key swing states trust the vice president, Joe Biden, over the president," he said. "And, even on the economy, which is considered the president's strong suit, it's almost a dead heat in a lot of these states."

"So, President Trump has a lot of work to do," Wallace told host John Roberts. "He’s got some time to do it. But, he’s obviously got to change and I've got to wonder whether [people] ... have noticed his very different approach to the coronavirus this week. Talking about it's going to get worse before it gets better, that it’s patriotic to wear masks, and then most dramatically, canceling his acceptance speech in Jacksonville, this big rally at the Republican convention."

President Donald Trump speaks during a news briefing at the White House, Thursday, July 2, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

"It strikes me as, he’s looking at these polls and he realizes [that] if you are in a hole, stop digging," he remarked.

Roberts said he had noticed a different side of the president at coronavirus briefings, but that some members of the GOP had voiced their concerns about a "melancholy Trump."

"The Trump that you see at 5 o'clock every afternoon this past week, Chris, is that a Trump that can win?" he asked.

Wallace replied that the "more disciplined" and "realistic" Trump could potentially be a more "effective president."

"You know, I haven't seen it as being melancholy and if people do, I don't think melancholy will last long. This is a pretty optimistic can-do president," he added.

Wallace said that the president could certainly turn the race around and that this new approach to the virus is impactful.

"What he's really got to do in a kind of a macro sense is, right now Donald Trump is running against Donald Trump. It's a referendum on Trump and how he has handled the coronavirus and the economic fallout and also race relations. He’s got to turn this from a referendum into a choice election," he advised.

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Wallace noted that would be hard to do with his opponent so "sheltered," but pointed out that Biden would eventually "have to come out."

"And, if he can turn it into more of a choice election – this is where I would take the country as opposed to this is where Joe Biden would take the country on big government, on spending and a lot of programs, immigration, law and order – then I think, you know, it’s a very competitive election," he said.

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"Right now, when you look at those numbers – [and] particularly independents to see It is almost 42-24 [or] something like that, it's almost double. And, seniors who went for Trump in 2016, now going strongly for Biden and also the suburbs," Wallace concluded. "He can't win with those numbers; he’s got to turn them around. But, he’s got the time to turn them around."