Doesn’t mean he’s not entirely about naked self-interest… I really don’t understand why we’re tying ourselves up in knots, when the easiest (and most likely) explanation is that he says whatever he needs to say to get ahead. 
Is there some reason why that most likely explanation isn’t good enough? Like, is there some reason that there needs to be some deep-seated psychological reason for his actions? Plenty of people willingly sway with the wind to get ahead. It’s a common feature of social life in a capitalist system, after all.
