“No sidetracks, Donald. Nice and easy,” Donald Trump said. | Getty Trump gives himself advice aloud: ‘Stay on point Donald, stay on point’

PENSACOLA, Fla. — Donald Trump channeled the counsel of his top advisers and uttered it out loud on Wednesday night: You’re rising in the polls so don’t screw it up.

“We’ve got to be nice and cool, nice and calm. All right, stay on point Donald, stay on point,” Trump said at a rally in Pensacola, as the crowd of thousands broke out in laughter.


“No sidetracks, Donald. Nice and easy,” Trump went on. “Because I’ve been watching Hillary in the last few days and she’s totally unhinged.”

Trump’s spirits have been rising along with his standing in the polls. He spoke at three rallies in three media markets across Florida on Wednesday, using a teleprompter to deliver prepared remarks at each.

In Miami, Trump said he was winning but wanting voters to “pretend we’re slightly behind.”

“We don’t want to blow it,” he said.

Most national polls still show Hillary Clinton leading but the gap has tightened in the last week.