One of strong points of Trump’s campaign, other than the blogging gold it provided every single day, was his penchant for saying exactly what a lot of people were thinking. High on that list was Trump’s unequivocal refusal to acknowledge anthropogenic global warming as anything more than a dangerous hoax.

The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 6, 2012

In his off-again–on-again meeting with the New York Times today, Trump seems to have succumbed to the disease that has most Republican presidents of the past 50 years, that would be the obsession with seeking approval and validation from the NYT editorial board.

Does Trump think human activity is linked to climate change? “I think there is some connectivity. Some, something. It depends on how much."

— Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016

Tom Friedman asks if Trump will withdraw from climate change accords. Trump: “I’m looking at it very closely. I have an open mind to it."

— Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016

On climate change, Trump says he is also thinking about "how much it will cost our companies” & the effect on American competitiveness.

— Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016

This isn’t a total retreat from his campaign stance on climate change and it does represent a more moderate tone in his policy pronouncements, for instance the nod to the cost of regulation on industry and the economy is a welcome step forward from the nutbaggery of the current administration, but it should give anyone who supported Trump rather than merely opposing Clinton pause. He’s said time and again the NY Times treats him and Republicans unfairly (correct), so why is he pulling his punches when he’s talking with them?