Comment by michaelteter
3 days ago
I saw an interview with Trump in the 80s. He was remarkably clear and articulate. He stayed on topic, he used multi-syllable words, and he generally sounded like someone worth listening to.
The comparison of today vs then is frankly shocking.
Simpler, but more powerful words.
I think the "nerd" stereotypes that HN is full of could learn from him in that respect.
Listen to Eisenhower, JFK, even Reagan. Are we children?
Obama seems like this great orator because he was just… okay. Like he could speak and sound like a coherent adult. That should be the bar.
What are we doing?
Learn from him in what way? He communicated articulately in grammatically correct, full sentences in the past. Now he rambles nearly incoherently.
What are we to learn from this? That his mental state has deteriorated? That much is obvious. Even ignoring all other evidence, it is utterly clear that he is a fraction of the communicator that he once was.