How Trump Speaks

Byron York: “The first thing to remember is that Trump does not give a speech in the sense that veteran political strategists or reporters recognize and understand a speech. From the very beginning of his campaign, Trump has expressed contempt for the entire genre of political speechmaking.”

“Instead of a prepared stump speech that he gives over and over again — the standard diet for political reporters covering the presidential race — Trump instead has chosen to deliver a stream of consciousness performance designed to capitalize on his celebrity, to entertain, to attack opponents, and to address the actual issues in the race. And most of all, to keep his audience awake and paying attention.”

“There’s a lot of bragging in Trump’s speeches. He can seem strangely needy, repeatedly asking the audience to affirm that he did a good job with this or that. But mostly he’s telling voters how great he is, how everything he does and everything he possesses is the best, and how he will be a great, great president.”