Trump's Running a Weird Campaign and He Knows It

"Let Trump Be Trump" is the sign that hangs in the presidential candidate's campaign headquarters in his eponymous NYC tower, and there doesn't seem to be any indication that the Donald's staffers are letting him do anything but that. The real-estate tycoon has coasted to the top of the polls with his brash, unapologetic style, and nothing he's done has been conventional, per a Wall Street Journal article that deems him a "one-man roadshow." He operates with a handpicked skeleton staff, enjoys doing his own media, hasn't spoken publicly about his positions on myriad topics—right now, only immigration reform is covered on his website—and rejects what he calls "political hacks," instead leaning on outside advisers (including his daughter, Ivanka) who appear to be champing at the bit to offer him their suggestions and services, per his campaign manager.

"A lot of what I'm doing is by instinct," Trump tells the Journal. "I assimilate a lot of information." Some strategists wonder, though, if Trump will soon have to acquiesce to campaigning conventions as his celebrity sheen wears off. He is taking some steps "normal" candidates take, such as readying offices in other states, prepping ballot-access drives, and working not only on a tax plan, but also initiatives dealing with veterans' issues, health care, and trade, per the Journal. But he still doesn't place too much stock in those, noting to the paper, "People don't care about seeing plans. They have confidence in me." As for those picking his eccentric strategy apart, Trump welcomes the challenge. "I hope they attack me, because everybody who attacks me is doomed," he tells the paper. (Read more about Trump's unorthodox approach in the Journal.)