"WORDS STILL COUNT IN THIS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION"

     Six years ago, one of this critic's first "Media Matters" article highlighted what was important in political speech making. Until then, daily political broadcasts were often boring, even during election campaigns where candidates' personalities were at the forefront. What people said was not particularly cogent. What individuals looked like or sounded like was. Subject matter was not salient. Charisma was.

     Nowadays it appears that language is what counts, although It's true that Biden's "performance" became the most important element in his debate with Trump. While aspects of delivery ( like gestures, posture and facial expressions) will always matter, WORDS will always remain a relevant consideration. Various recent examples prove the point.

     To start with, Trump's and Vance's use of words are particularly dramatic, colorful and provocative. As such, they conjure up images in the minds of the listener, which is an effective rhetorical  device.

Consider when Trump described "Immigrants" as "Caravans" several years ago, suggesting a large, unrelenting entity capable of conveying both strength and danger. He uses the word "Invasion" now, providing the same meaning. The expression "Cat Ladies" favored by Vance is another example of ways in which images are conjured up. After all, Felines can't be trusted, unpredictably sneaking around corners and crevices ( popular in horror movies and film noir).

     Trump's mispronunciation of Kamala Harris' first name also includes the idea of an image or "confusion" that it creates for the listener, relating to the Vice President's perceived  abilities.

     However, groups of words put together can have positive, not negative, meanings as well, and Harris uses this technique especially well. For example, at a recent rally, she stated ," We must energize, mobilize and organize. Are you ready to make your voices heard?" Here we have like- sounding words connoting action. Verbs are, in fact, important to Harris. Consider when she comments, "When you know what you stand for, you know what to fight for." 

     While their use of words has been characterized as plain talk, Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, have developed an opposing style that also seems eloquent somehow. Their words ebb and flow, maintaining a rhythm that keeps our attention, Usually, no individual word stands out as in Trump's speeches. Instead, we imagine that their words are connected to each other, holding hands as they glide across the fields.