After Wisconsin stumble, Trump moves to reshape his campaign
The election eve rally Monday at the grand Milwaukee Theatre, which featured the heavily promoted campaign return of the GOP front-runner's wife, was intended as a capstone of Trump's three-day blitz through the state.
A big-enough victory could have put Trump on a path to clinch the number of delegates needed to win the nomination before the party's convention in July.
Trump still holds a solid lead in the race, but the stinging defeat was evidence that Trump's unorthodox campaign — run by largely inexperienced operatives and fueled by the candidate's sheer force of personality — had hit a wall.
[...] days after the Wisconsin loss, he relented on that front as he tries to recapture his momentum and gear up for a potential general election race against likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
"In many ways, I think it's a recognition that the successful primary campaign that Mr. Trump has run has to shift gears," said adviser Ed Brookover, brought on board to help lead the delegate strategy.
With minimal spending on advertising and a small staff in comparison with Clinton's, the Trump campaign has upended the political orthodoxy by riding large rallies and a knack for earning free media, and risen to the top of the GOP race.
The state's influential conservative talk radio circuit proved an unfriendly venue to a candidate who has glided effortlessly through so many interviews.
The new director, Patrick Davis, started running Trump's fledgling operation on Wednesday, after Cruz had snapped up nearly one-sixth of the state's delegates.