He's doing the zig zag, because he doesn't want to be pinned down.

So they keep trying to fit the Trump administration into the neat, pre-assigned narratives they have for stuff. Covering this administration as it's presented would require thinking up a new narrative, and ain't nobody got time for that! Once all this unpleasantness is over and we see where it winds up, then the media will settle on their narrative. Look for self-justifying assertions of "We knew it all the time," coupled with "Nobody could have anticipated" concluding with "It's all the Democrats' fault." Those are the storylines they're comfortable with.