On September 10 the presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump met in Philadelphia. They debated their policy positions and accomplishments on topics like abortion, immigration and foreign affairs. But an important question is, how did they communicate their views and comments to the voter? Each candidate had a different speaking style which used different rhetorical strategies.
You may have heard of the word “rhetoric” , a term most often used in English class. It is a strategy like hyperbole or a metaphor which grabs the attention of the viewer and helps make their argument more interesting. It also includes “ethos”, appealing to someone’s character or endorsement, “pathos” appealing to emotion and “logos” appealing to logic and reasoning. Before this debate many have criticized Vice President Kamala Harris for not giving the voters enough information on her plans and policies. A frequent criticism of former president Trump was that he lies a lot. Of the many debate rules each contested, they did agree to have their mics muted.
At the start of the debate, Trump used logos by mentioning lots of numbers and statistics about the economy and immigration – although they were completely inaccurate. This served to give his argument more credibility but the numbers were outrageously false. The former president lied often during the debate. He also appeals to pathos when speaking Immigrants in quotes, “We have to get them out. We have to get them out fast.” Trump uses pathos on immigration to create fear that immigrants will take people’s jobs evoking emotion. This creates a sense of urgency that he needs to be elected. He also says that many of the wars going on right now would have not happened if he were elected. For this he utilizes ethos saying that he knows both the Ukrainian President Vlodmyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladmir Putin, which gives him the image of being respected by world leaders. VP Harris uses this against him and says the world leaders did not respect him and Putin wanted to manipulate him. “It is well known that he admires dictators, and wants to be a dictator on day one according to himself. It is well known that he said of Putin that he can do whatever the hell he wants and go into Ukraine.” She claimed. Trump also uses personal attacks on VP Harris and President Joe Biden. He harnesses examples of things he did not think were that good like the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the economy.
VP Kamala Harris provided examples of things she would help Americans with like abortion, housing and creating a more equal economy. She focused on making things better rather than how people feel about the economy now. She uses ethos by emphasizing her endorsement by several Republicans but also employs this against the former president when she talked about how many of his former officials are against him. Another time she appeals to ethos is when she mentions her background as a district attorney. This makes her seem more experienced and resilient to criticism she may get from the right for changing her views. She harnesses logos on Trump’s background when she talks about his attacks on democracy and that he failed as a businessman. If he can’t succeed then and he attacked our democracy in the past, why should he rule again when he can do that again, She asks. This makes the former president less appealing to people who have been paying attention to the news and reminds them of the things he did. “Let’s talk about what Donald Trump left you. Donald Trump left us the worst unemployment since the great depression. Donald Trump left us with the worst public health epidemic in a century. Donald Trump left us with the worst attack on our democracy since the civil war.’’ This leaves the audience with a focus on her opponent and what he has done for the country. But she also gives plans on what she is going to do. She gives a plan for creating an opportunity economy also appealing to the middle class. Trump also addresses the moderator or Kamala Harris but the Vice President addresses the audience or Trump. She also uses humor when talking about the Trump rally saying that people leave after a while because they are so tired and bored. During this comment she makes fun of the claims they make at the rallies, where they talk about fictional claims and debunked theories. She also used Trump’s own words against him when she said that he wants to terminate the constitution and when he thanked the Chinese leader.
Both of their rhetorical strategies show us the difference between them. They emphasized different points on their accomplishments. They both tried to defend themselves against criticism they have received in the past. The candidates attack each other as not fit for the office. Trump exploits hatred and fear when he is speaking, but he becomes less intelligible as the debate goes on. Kamala Harris spoke of hope and the future and what America needs. This made her come away as the winner.
