HAVE ANY OF THEM EVER MET HIM?:

A source briefed on his internal polls called them "brutal," showing a significant drop-off in independent support.

He has a "woman problem" in the words of another adviser.

And Trump's more incendiary rhetoric and actions -- "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" and his calls for the military to enter cities -- trouble some of his top aides.

What they're saying: "There's a thought that we need to shift to be much more cohesive in terms of a message of healing, rebuilding, restoring, recovering ... a theme that goes with COVID and the economy and the race stuff," said a senior adviser to Trump.

"The messaging that works for the red-MAGA-hat base doesn't resonate with independents."

"He has to tone down the most incendiary rhetoric, talk about law and order in the context of riots, and at the same time say the country's united that what happened to George Floyd can never happen again," a second adviser familiar with the internal discussion said.

"He's starting to hear from a lot of people, political people, who are saying, 'Simmer down. ... You are not helping the situation by talking about only sending the military in.'"

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