Donald Trump Gambles on Immigration but Sends Conflicting Signals

Donald J. Trump made an audacious attempt on Wednesday to remake his image on the divisive issue of immigration, shelving his plan to deport 11 million undocumented people and arguing that a Trump administration and Mexico would secure the border together.

In a spirited bid for undecided American voters to see him anew, Mr. Trump swept into Mexico City to make overtures to a nation he has repeatedly denigrated, then flew to Phoenix to outline in his usual bullying tone his latest priorities on immigration.

Yet the juxtaposition of Mr. Trump’s dual performances was so jarring that his true vision and intentions on immigration were hard to discern. He displayed an almost unrecognizable demeanor during his afternoon in Mexico, appearing measured and diplomatic, while hours later he took the stage at his campaign rally and denounced illegal immigrants on the whole as a criminally minded and dangerous group that sows terror in communities and commits murders, rapes and other heinous violence.

Mr. Trump’s mixed messages on whom he would deport and when, and how the government would go about removing people from the country, were further muddled by the incendiary language in the Phoenix speech — a deliberate effort by campaign advisers to draw attention to his criticism of illegal immigrants rather than the specifics of his plan.

In his speech, Mr. Trump fervently tried to depict himself as an ally of average workers, saying their economic interests were far more important than the needs of undocumented workers. But he left unclear what would happen to those millions of illegal immigrants, saying only that “the appropriate disposition of those individuals” will take place at some future date after the criminals are deported and his border wall is built.

The trip to Mexico City was not without snags. Standing beside President Peña Nieto, Mr. Trump indicated that he had pulled a punch and chosen not to discuss his campaign promise to compel Mexico to pay for the wall. Yet Mr. Peña Nieto saw it somewhat differently, saying later on Twitter that at the start of their meeting, “I made it clear that Mexico will not pay for the wall.”

Mr. Peña Nieto did not dispute Mr. Trump at their news conference, however, and Mexican officials said that the two men did not dwell on the wall and that their meeting was conciliatory.

In Phoenix, Mr. Trump responded to Mr. Peña Nieto with the hectoring language that has long been part of his strategy to whip up his crowds.

“Mexico will pay for the wall, believe me — 100 percent — they don’t know it yet, but they will pay for the wall,” Mr. Trump said. “They’re great people, and great leaders, but they will pay for the wall.”

Mr. Trump had billed the Phoenix speech as a major address on immigration, and many Republican leaders and voters had hoped for more clarity about his positions. Mr. Trump outlined several steps that he would take to deport criminals and those who overstayed their visas and end so-called sanctuary cities, while saying that “the one route and only route” for others to obtain legal status would be “to return home and apply for re-entry.”

Yet for all the fiery language and stagecraft, it was far from clear if Mr. Trump’s most ardent supporters would stick by him as he moves away from his original deportation-focused policy on immigration, or if he would win over many undecided voters with his new approach. But Mr. Trump went to great lengths to urge voters to view the presidential race as an epochal moment.

Mr. Peña Nieto, who pointedly emphasized goals like “mutual respect” and “constructive” relations several times in his remarks, did Mr. Trump some favors with his respectful treatment: The Mexican president acknowledged that every country had a “right” to protect its own border, and suggested that Mr. Trump wanted to move on from his antagonistic remarks of the past.

Yet Mr. Trump, who is known for insisting that only he can fix America’s problems, also suggested that he wanted Mexico to be a partner on border security.

“I really believe that the president and I will solve those problems,” Mr. Trump said. “We will get them solved. Illegal immigration is a problem for Mexico as well as for us. Drugs are a tremendous problem from Mexico as well as us. I mean it’s not a one-way street.”

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