A Combative Trump Yells at the Nation

New York Times: “Mr. Trump, always more comfortable with what he calls his ‘weave’ of free association rather than reading from a teleprompter, raced through his talk as if he was late to an important dinner. There were no digressions, unlike his speech in Pennsylvania a week ago when he repeatedly veered from the topic. At times he seemed to be yelling — almost as if he didn’t believe he had to take the time to convince his audience of how well his first 11 months had gone.”

Washington Post: “Trump crammed his usual 90-minute rally routine into 18 minutes of prime-time broadcast television on Wednesday, perplexing ‘Survivor’ finale viewers and his own allies alike.”

“He spoke more than 2,600 words in that time, markedly faster than his usual plodding pace at the teleprompter. His purpose was to ease concerns about the economy and to persuade Americans that he gets it. Afterward, even his own allies puzzled over whether the president did more harm than good with his rushed delivery and harsh tone.”