A top adviser said Trump is now focused on matters that are essential in setting up his administration, not comments made during the heat of the campaign.

The change of tune has angered some of his conservative supporters.

If Trump’s appointees do not follow through on his pledge to investigate Clinton for criminal violations he accused her of, “it would be a betrayal of his promise to the American people to ‘drain the swamp’ of out-of-control corruption in Washington,” said the group Judicial Watch.

And Breitbart, the conservative news site whose former head, Stephen Bannon, is now a senior counselor to Trump, headlined its story about the switch with “Broken Promise”.

After a year blasting The New York Times, Trump submitted to an interview with reporters and editors at the Times office where he spoke about conflicts of interest (“the law’s totally on my side”), the so-called “alt-right” (it’s not a group I want to energise”) and his relationship with fellow Republicans in Congress (“right now they are in love with me”).

His interview comments on a possible prosecution of his former foe Clinton stood in stark contrast to his incendiary rhetoric throughout the campaign, during which he accused her breaking laws with her email practices and angrily barked at her that “you’d be in jail” if he were president.

“I don’t want to hurt the Clintons, I really don’t,” Trump said in the interview. Sympathetically, he said, “She went through a lot and suffered greatly in many different ways.”

Though he declined to definitively rule out a prosecution, he said, “It’s just not something that I feel very strongly about.”

As for global warming, Trump has repeatedly questioned the idea, suggesting at times that it is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese to hurt US manufacturers with environmental regulations.

But on Tuesday, he said he would “keep an open mind” about pulling the United States out of the landmark, multi-national Paris Agreement on climate change and said “I think there is some connectivity” between human activity and climate changes.

Trump, who left late on Tuesday to spend Thanksgiving at his estate in Florida, also continued to work to populate his incoming administration, tweeting that he was “seriously considering” former GOP presidential rival Ben Carson to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Earlier on Tuesday, it was confirmed that Trump’s charity had admitted it violated IRS regulations barring it from using its money or assets to benefit Trump, his family, his companies or substantial contributors to the foundation.

Trump: What he said then, and what he’s saying now

CLIMATE CHANGE

Then: “The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive.” (2012 tweet). “Global warming is an expensive hoax!” (January 2014 tweet).

Now: “I think there is some connectivity (between human activity and climate change). Some, something. It depends on how much.” “I’m looking at (withdrawing from climate change accords) very closely. I have an open mind to it.”

PROSECUTING CLINTON

Then: “If I win, I am going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation because there has never been so many lies, so much deception.” (October 9 debate).

Now: “It’s just not something that I feel very strongly about. … I think it would be very, very divisive for the country.” – On pursuing criminal charges against the Clintons.

BEN CARSON

Then: “It’s in the (Carson’s memoir) that he’s got a pathological temper. … That’s a big problem because you don’t cure that … as an example: child molesting. You don’t cure these people.” (November 12, 2015, CNN interview).

Now: “I am seriously considering Dr Ben Carson as the head of (housing and urban development). I’ve gotten to know him well – he’s a greatly talented person who loves people!” (November 22 tweet).

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

Then: “He will go down as one of the worst presidents in the history of our country.” (July 27 interview with NBC).

Now: “I really liked him a lot” (After meeting Obama at the White House)

LIBEL LAWS

Then: “We ought to open up the libel laws, and I’m going to do that.” (February 27 interview on Fox News).

Now: Says someone told him, “You know, you might be sued a lot more.” “I said, ‘You know, I hadn’t thought of that.”‘

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Then: “No paper is more corrupt than the failing New York Times. The good news is it is failing, it won’t be around too much longer. But they are really, really bad people.” (October 14 rally).

Now: “I have great respect for the New York Times. I have tremendous respect.” But he adds: “I think I’ve been treated very rough.”

– AP