Campaign 2016: Donald Trump isn’t making it easy to be one of his surrogates.

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump isn’t making it easy for top supporters and advisers, from his running mate on down, to defend him or explain some campaign positions.

Across the Sunday news shows, a parade of Trump stand-ins, led by vice presidential nominee Mike Pence, couldn’t say whether Trump was sticking with or changing a central promise to expel the roughly 11 million people living in the U.S. illegally, with the help of a “deportation force.”

Pence and other Trump surrogates insisted the GOP presidential nominee has been “absolutely consistent” on his immigration policy and his principles of tightening U.S. laws in a “humane” way. Trump said late Sunday that he’s planning a speech Wednesday on immigration.

Trump has focused lately on deporting people who are in the U.S. illegally and who have committed crimes. But who Trump considers a criminal remained unclear Sunday.

“Those are the things that Donald Trump is going to answer. And this is not a simple question,” said Reince Priebus, the Republican National Committee chairman.

Pressed on the question, Priebus replied: “I just don’t speak for Donald Trump.”

Other Trump stand-ins, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, spoke similarly, a striking indication that even they don’t know the answer to such a critical question.

Trump in recent days has suggested he might be “softening” on the deportation force and that he might be open to allowing at least some immigrants in the country illegally to stay, as long as they pay taxes. But by Thursday, he was ruling out any kind of legal status — “unless they leave the country and come back,” he told CNN.

Pence appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Priebus was on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” and Christie was interviewed on ABC’s “This Week.”