Politics
Opinion: For voters, what Harris or Trump say may matter less than how they say it
Imagine someone needs to convince you of a surprising fact — say, that your partner is cheating on you. Your best friend might be direct: “They’re cheating on you!” They might even exaggerate a little to get you extra worked up: “It’s been going on for ages! They’re parading around all over town!” But a stranger would need to be more circumspect and subtle: “I’m surprised to hear you’re a couple, because I saw …”
There are essentially two different ways to communicate persuasively, and the differences have everything to do with the communicator’s social authority. We’re seeing it play out on the campaign trail: Donald Trump is regularly characterized as forward and bombastic, while Kamala Harris is often criticized for being too indirect or obtuse. Both styles can be effective, but it’s helpful to consider who uses these different approaches and why.
People we see as trustworthy — either because they are familiar to us or because they are members of a race, class or gender our society treats as authoritative — can use direct and unambiguous language to push others into their way of thinking. If you trust someone, they can convince you of something by speaking straightforwardly about it — and they can be even more effective by taking advantage of their authority and exaggerating the truth. This manner of speech has been historically linked to dictators and fascists, but it’s also something you might see in your day-to-day life from someone in a position of power over you — like your boss — or someone you’re in a close relationship with, like your significant other.
On the other hand, those who are not in positions of authority must be much more subtle and measured. If you are not already inclined to take someone’s word for something, that person doesn’t have the luxury of simply stating the facts as they see them. They have to be more circumspect and make their points implicitly.
One way to be implicitly persuasive is to presuppose something rather than state it outright. One of the differences between the English articles “a” and “the” is that “the” often presupposes uniqueness, i.e., that there is only one. So a politician could bill herself as “an honest politician,” or include a presupposition by claiming she is “the honest politician.” This second option packs a bigger semantic punch but is notably less direct than explicitly saying something like “I am an honest politician, and my rival is not.”
Striving for plausible deniability is another way to be implicitly persuasive. If the point you need to communicate is controversial and potentially socially dangerous and you aren’t in a position of power, it’s a good idea to speak as noncommittally as possible. This is achievable using distancing language or hedging, for example: “If pressed, I might feel that it’s appropriate to suppose your partner might be cheating on you.” Another way to gain plausible deniability is by using oblique language, such as so-called dog whistles, which signal meaning to one group without alerting others. These techniques rely on a distinction between lying outright and being misleading. Misleading styles are used extensively in persuasion, both by people who can’t afford to be direct and by those with ulterior motives, such as advertisers and public relations experts.
On a day-to-day basis, it’s better to think of indirect language as a natural reflex based on our fluid roles in society, not a sign of weakness to be stamped out. If we had a better understanding of these linguistic power dynamics, we might have, for instance, different legal precedents. One unfortunate court ruling held that saying, “I think I would like to talk to a lawyer” to a police officer does not legally qualify as a request for a lawyer. But stating, “I think I would like a salad” would uncontroversially be seen by a restaurant server as an order — in a context in which the power imbalance is flipped.
Understanding the real motivations for indirect communication also would help us work to avoid gender and racial bias: While Harris is almost always characterized as more indirect than Trump, conversation analysis has shown that Trump used more hedging and uncertain language in their presidential debate. This is consistent with findings that women are disproportionately criticized for using indirect language, when it is more or less equally used by all genders. This is true for tag questions (statements ending with an interrogative question, such as “You watched the debate, didn’t you?”) and vocal fry (a creakiness or raspiness in one’s voice that some assume is an affectation.) Both have been disproportionately associated with women and incorrectly characterized as signaling weakness in the speaker.
It’s important to remember that generally we do not have the luxury of choosing between these two approaches to persuasive communication. The fact that those with power can afford to speak directly, while those without it cannot, means that more than anything, our communication styles reflect the inequities already established in our society.
Jessica Rett is a professor of linguistics at UCLA. Her research investigates the meaning of words and how they contribute to the meanings of sentences, either in isolation or in broader contexts.
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Former President Donald Trump cut a Pennsylvania town hall short on Monday, stopping questions from the audience after two medical emergencies unfolded in the crowd.
The campaign town hall at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center & Fairgrounds in Oaks, Pennsylvania, first came to a halt when South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, the event’s host, was discussing Vice President Kamala Harris’ appearance on “The View” and slamming the Democratic nominee’s support of President Biden’s energy policies.
“Hold it. A doctor, please,” Trump interjected, noticing a commotion in the crowd. “Doctor, thank you very much. We have incredible people. They come here hours before, and it’s a little hot.”
“They’re there with us all the way. We got to respect them,” Trump continued, referencing his supporters. “And you take your time, doctor. Take your time. Thank you very much. We always have great doctors in the audience. We’ve never had too much of a problem. Look at the quality of care we have. It’s incredible when you think that these people, first responders, our first responders are amazing.”
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Former President Donald Trump holds a town hall at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center on Oct.14, 2024, in Oaks, Pennsylvania. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
The incident was not captured on camera, though the New York Post reported that “a heavyset middle-aged man was wheeled out on a stretcher with his shirt cut open.”
“Let’s wait till they take care of this incredible person who I guarantee you is a great patriot, I guarantee it,” Trump said. “Everybody in this room is a patriot.”
The Republican presidential nominee requested that “Ave Maria” be sounded over the loudspeaker like it had at his recent comeback rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in honor of firefighter Corey Comperatore, the rallygoer killed during the first assassination attempt on Trump’s life on July 13.
“We’ll be praying for him,” Noem said of the man wheeled out before taking another audience question.
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Trump began his response about border security before the crowd yelled again about another medical incident. The former president stood up and looked into the crowd, stating “Take your time, doctor.”
Supporters cheer as former President Donald Trump holds a town hall at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center on Oct. 14, 2024 in Oaks, Pennsylvania. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
“I wish we could open those doors,” Trump said. “For security reasons, they can’t. But you know what I said? Just open them. Because anybody comes through those doors, you know what’s going to happen to them.”
“It looks like, sir, she’s on her feet and walking out. Let’s encourage her,” Noem said. “I know it’s really warm in here. Everybody agrees that it’s really warm in here. We’ve got a lot of people who love America. I’m going to ask that if you have a chair, maybe sit so everyone around you can sit and still see the president.”
Former President Donald Trump holds a town hall at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Oct. 14, 2024 in Oaks, Pennsylvania. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
“They’re both okay. Yes, they’re both. They’re both in good shape. And that’s wonderful,” Trump said of the two audience members who needed medical attention.
Trump then decided not to take more questions from the crowd, calling on organizers to play music in the venue instead.
Politics
Harris plays mashup of Trump’s 'enemy within' comments at Erie rally, shortly after crowd chants 'lock him up'
Vice President Kamala Harris’ criticisms of former President Trump and her drawing of connections between his agenda and that of the conservative Project 2025 initiative spurred chants at an Erie, Pennsylvania, rally reminiscent of the 2016 White House race.
Shortly after the crowd erupted in “lock him up” retorts – similar to Trump rallygoers’ reaction to Hillary Clinton’s mishandling of classified communications during the 2016 cycle – Harris played a mashup of clips in which Trump warned of dangers from “the enemy within.”
“The worst people are the enemies from within… those people are more dangerous; the enemy within; than Russia and China. These people should be put in jail the way they talk about our judges and our justices,” Trump collectively stated in some of the television clips played.
“You heard his words,” Harris said after the montage. “He’s talking about the enemy within, Pennsylvania. He’s talking about the enemy within our country, Pennsylvania. He’s talking about how he considers anyone who doesn’t support him or who will not bend to his will, an enemy of our country. It’s a serious issue,” she said.
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Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a church service at Koinonia Christian Center in Greenville, N.C., Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
In recent comments on the matter to Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo, Trump spoke about such “enemies,” and quipped that while China and Russia are “dangerous” at times to deal with, “the thing that’s tougher to handle are these lunatics that we have inside like Adam Schiff.”
Schiff, a congressman from Burbank, Calif., is currently the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate against Republican retired MLB star Steve Garvey.
In Erie, Harris said Trump opened the door to using the military to “go after” groups, hypothesizing that they might include journalists critical of him, election officials he clashes with or judges that rule against his will.
The Democratic nominee said that, therefore, voting for Trump would be a “huge risk for America” and that her GOP opponent is “increasingly unstable and unhinged.”
Reached for comment, the Trump campaign rejected her warnings, expressing that it was the “Harris-Biden administration that weaponized our justice system to go after President Trump with trumped-up charges in an effort to silence their political rivals.”
“If Kamala wants to cry about ‘unchecked’ abuse of power, she should look in the mirror,” said Pennsylvania Team Trump spokesman Kush Desai.
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Meanwhile, Harris’ preceding comments about the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling in Trump’s favor led to the aforementioned “lock him up” chants.
Harris appeared to sidestep any agreement with such expression, telling the crowd, “hold on, hold on,” and advising that they make their voice heard instead at the ballot box.
“The courts will handle that. Let’s handle November, shall we?” Harris said.
“Look, anybody who said they would terminate the Constitution of the United States should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States – never again.”
Prior to the rally, Harris stopped at a local business, and was greeted upon arrival in Pennsylvania’s only beachfront city by Democratic Mayor Joe Schember and State Rep. Ryan Bizzarro, D-Erie, according to reports.
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., offered the warm-up speech, and the Democratic nominee was ultimately introduced by Karen Kalivoda, a retired civil servant and Erie native.
On the other end of the Commonwealth, Trump was participating in a Pennsylvania town hall hosted by South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem at an exposition center near King of Prussia.
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