When it comes to the differences between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the list is seemingly
endless.
Not only are the two Presidential nominees on opposite sides of the
political and ideological spectrum, they’ve got radically different personality types.
Nowhere is this more clear than when they’re out on the stump.
So how do Trump and Clinton’s speaking styles differ?
Well, Hillary Clinton’s speaking style has been described as restrained and carefully
calculated.
She often makes abstract statements using soft or sterile language, like promising to
“restore fairness to our economy” or “ensure” that the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes.
For many, this can be read as overly planned and emotionless, which experts say is a key
reason she ranks low in likability.
I think Hillary Clinton is more conventional, has a more conventional relationship with
her speechwriters where they are channeling her voice rather than replacing her voice
with one that is more acceptable to voters.
That’s David Litt, a former speechwriter for President Barack Obama.
The way he sees it, Clinton is trying to reach out to younger voters who may not be familiar
with the Clinton legacy.
And this may take a little extra effort than it would take Trump, who already has an established
television presence.
I think for somebody who is by her own admission not a natural performer, she is trying to
get better and better and focus attention where it needs to be.
Unlike Clinton, Trump tends to be very direct.
His most famous statements are vague and hyperbolic, for instance calling the Iran deal a “total
disaster” and Barack Obama “the worst president in history”. Trump deliberately
alienates himself and his supporters from the political establishment.
For example, when Hillary Clinton came out with her slogan, “I’m With Her”, positioning
herself as a leader to be followed, Trump replied with the slogan “I’m With You”.
Trump’s approach is informal and off-the-cuff.
For some of his supporters, this reads as ‘down to earth’, but for others it comes
off as unprepared and ignorant of the issues.
I think that if you look at, to me Donald Trump's version of speechwriting is really
the worst version of what speechwriting can be.
Which is you clearly see that when he's speaking off-the-cuff, he doesn't have a clear sense
of what he's talking about.
He doesn't have a clear sense of how the country works or how the economy works or how international
and national security work.
And while Litt does hold a bias, there are other experts who have similar opinions of
Trump’s speaking style.
Some have even compared it to that of an aggressive salesmen.
One trick they point to is Trump’s use of strong, punchy adjectives and other verbal
intensifiers.
For instance promising to make your children “very very safe” and build an “impenetrable,
physical, tall, powerful, beautiful, southern border wall”.
Another salesman tactic is to claim to have direct experience with what you're selling.
Trump does this by starting many of his sentences with “Believe me” or “many people are
saying”.
Experts say this works because people are more inclined to believe something that has
been talked about or shared.
Donald Trump has brought this something we haven't seen in American politics as kind
of far right populism.
It's clearly proven popular with a certain segment of the electorate.
Trump and Clinton’s radically different speaking styles may have something to do with
their respective campaign themes.
Trump tends to paint the United States as broken and weak, something that needs to be
“made great again”.
Clinton, however, often lists off the country’s accomplishments.
No better is this seen than in their nominee acceptance speeches.
At the Republican National Convention, Trump stated that the country was in a “moment
of crisis” in which attacks on police and terrorism “threaten our very way of
life”.
But Clinton had a much more positive take on the state of the nation, saying America
has “the most powerful military”, the “most innovative engineers”, the “most
enduring values” and the “most dynamic and diverse people in the world.”
But David Litt says in the end, style doesn’t matter as much as content, and their character
comes through no matter what they say.
Writing speeches for the President is a high-pressure job, and one that David Litt took on soon
after graduating college.
Find out more about his experience working with President Obama in Seeker Stories episode.
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