ON POLITICS

Trump's regrets are general, not specific

David M Jackson
USA TODAY

Donald Trump says he regrets making offensive comments, but he hasn't specified which ones he is referring to, and nor have his aides.

"He was talking about anyone who feels offended by anything he said, and that's all him," new campaign manager Kellyanne Conway told ABC'sGood Morning America.

Speaking the morning after Trump expressed contrition in a speech in North Carolina, Conway told ABC: "You know, he took extra time yesterday going over that speech with a pen, so that was a decision he made. Those are his words."

The Republican nominee told supporters in Charlotte:

"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."

Critics met Trump's words with skepticism.

"Donald Trump’s teleprompter expressed regret for the first time during this campaign,” said Brad Woodhouse, president of the pro-Clinton group Correct The Record. “Yet Trump did not say what he regrets, and he did not apologize to anyone."

Trump has tangled with many critics over the course of his campaign, including a Muslim couple who lost their son in the Iraq War.

Asked whether Trump would meet with Khizr and Ghazala Khan, Conway told ABC that he may.

"I hope they heard him and I hope America heard him last night," she said, adding that she hopes anyone who has criticized Trump "for being insensitive or for mocking someone at least shows some recognition and some forgiveness.”