Writing expert dissects how Trump uses simple language to distort reality for Americans
A writing expert is raising alarms about how Donald Trump uses language, arguing that the president's word choices can distort reality and “mislead” the public.
In a guest essay for The New York Times, author and former Washington Post critic Sarah L. Kaufman points to Trump’s repeated claim that “we won” during the ongoing conflict with Iran – despite continued fighting – as a key example of his use of language.
“What did he mean?” Kaufman asked readers. “Mr. Trump’s use of the past participle of ‘win’ expresses a completed action. ‘Win’ can’t mean victory when ongoing fighting continues to throw the world economy into chaos.”
She went on to argue in her essay, published on Friday, that Trump relies heavily on simple, forceful verbs not to clarify events, but to obscure them.
“I have observed a set of patterns in the way Mr. Trump speaks and writes over his two terms in office that reveal how the president uses verbs to evade responsibility and even proclaim a new form of leadership," she wrote.
Kaufman also highlighted Trump’s rhetorical style, writing: “His style is experimental and impulsive. He’s unafraid to take risks; he improvises and zigzags. He voices dramatic ideas in offhand ways, ideas that carry grave geopolitical and human consequences.”
She concluded that verbs carry moral weight, “especially in political speech.”
“They can reveal the truth and show us when someone is shouldering responsibility, or they can evade all of that and draw the curtain,” she added.