Judge Luttig reveals why he spoke so slowly at Jan. 6 hearing

[LetMyPeopleVote]

Judge Luttig was being careful and deliberate for reason

Link to tweet

https://www.rawstory.com/michael-luttig-2657530123/

"What you could not know, and did not know, but I will tell you now, is that I believed I had an obligation to the Select Committee and to the country, first to formulate . . . then to measure . . . and then . . . to meter out . . .every . . . single . . . word . . . that I spoke . . . , carefully . . . exactingly . . . and . . . deliberately, so that the words I spoke were pristine clear and would be heard, and therefore understood, as such," he explained.

"I believed Thursday that I had that high responsibility and obligation -- to myself, even if to no other. Also please bear in mind that Thursday was the first time in 68 years, to my knowledge, I had ever been on national television, let alone national television like that. And though not scared, I was concerned that I do my very best and not embarrass myself, as I think anyone who found themselves in that frightening circumstance would be," he continued.

"I decided to respond to your at once astute and understanding tweet finally this afternoon, because I have been watching the tweets all day suggesting that I am recovering from a severe stroke, and my friends, out of their concern for me and my family, have been earnestly forwarding me these tweets, asking me if I am alright. Such is social media, I understand. But I profoundly believe in social media's foundational, in fact revolutionary, value and contribution to Free Speech in our country, and for that reason I willingly accept the occasional bad that comes from social media, in return for the much more frequent good that comes from it -- at least from the vastly more responsible, respectful speech on those media," he wrote.


"That is why, 16 years after my retirement from the Bench, even then as a very skeptical, curmudgeonly old federal judge, I created a Facebook account and then a Twitter account -- slowly . . . very slowly . . . one account first . . . and then . . . followed . . . by the other. All of this said, I am not recovering from a stroke or any other malady, I promise. Thankfully, I have never been as sick or as so debilitated as that ever in my life, and would not want that for anyone. Knock on wood, I have never even been really sick a day in my life," he revealed.

"I was more ready, prepared and intellectually focused (I had thought) during Thursday's hearing than I have ever been for anything in my life. I gather my face appeared 'too red' for some on Twitter, betraying to them serious illness. The explanation was more innocent than that.At the last minute, I had been able during the weekend preceding my testimony to help my daughter get settled into her new home, where the temperatures were in the upper 90s, and where I was appreciatively, though unwittingly, to get just a little bit of needed suntan!" he wrote.

"What I will say, though, is this. And I think it explains it all. All my life, I have said (as to myself, and at times, by way of sarcastic prescription for others) that I never . . . talk . . . any . . . faster . . . than . . . my . . . mind . . . can . . . think. I will proudly assure everyone on Twitter that I was riveted, laser-like as never before, on that promise to myself beginning promptly at the hour of 1:00 pm Thursday afternoon," he wrote. "What is more, as consciously as one can be aware of something subconsciously, I was, in your poetic words of which I was, and am myself, incapable even of conjuring, Mr. Hagan, supremely conscious that, if I were chiseling words in stone that day, it was imperative that I chisel the exact words that I would want to be chiseled in stone, were I chiseling words in stone for history."

[PJMcK]

1. Judge Luttig could turn out to be a hero (n/t)

[Scrivener7]

2. His delivery did not help his clarity, and his lack of clarity on the "historic precedent" that

doesn't exist has - as we knew it would - become a talking point among republiQans, most lately in tfg's speech, that there is a historic precedent for the VP accepting an alternate slate of electors.

He made some wonderful statements. He also made some incomprehensible and convoluted ones that are too easy to disastrously misinterpret. Good and bad will come from his speech.

[Disaffected]

5. Sadly true IMO. nt

Still, he has much to recommend - a man of high integrity and moral authority.

[meadowlander]

14. I've testified as an expert witness in hearings before.

None of the questions coming your way should generally be surprising to you. You are being asked to speak because you are an expert in that field and have studied and spoken on the topic many time before.

You think about what you want to say ahead of time and you practice it until you can convey it effectively.

A lot of the time you are also just reading a written statement that you prepared ahead of time so you could wordsmith it and check it with your lawyers, coordinate with the other witnesses so you aren't repeating each other, check that the level of technical language you are using is appropriate for your audience, etc.

I find it a bit surprising that anyone with as much experience as Judge Luttig has would be speaking "at the pace he was thinking" in the hearing "so he could choose the right words for the occasion."

How much warning did he have that he was going to be testifying and what has he been doing in the meantime?

Not everyone is a great public speaker. I'm certainly not. But when your words count and you only get to say them once you compensate for that by preparing ahead of time, not delivering so slowly and circuitously on the day that people can't follow your train of thought.

My impression was that he tried to wing it on the day, got overwhelmed, choked a bit, and punted some of his early answers. And he knew it because he was apologising on the stand for how convoluted some of his responses were.

Did he have useful information? Sure. Did he convey it in an effective way to a general audience? Not really. It's not the end of the world though because most people watch the news, which was able to cherry pick and get other people to explain his points, instead of the long form hearings.

But no, it isn't "petty" to comment on his poor delivery. It was poor delivery and it inhibited his ability to connect with his audience and convey information to them. Which was the point of him being there.

[Scrivener7]

16. I totally agree. There have been a lot of comments about how people are wrong

to criticize him. Some say it shows we have to always be entertained. Some say it shows how we always have to have things delivered to us quickly.

Neither of those is true. We need things comprehensible. And, as you say, the guy knew what he was going to be asked, and should have known beforehand what he was going to say. And in other clips of him speaking, he has a totally normal delivery.

In terms purely of his content, I did not think it was clear. As I say, some things he said were great. Some, including a central question of whether there is a historic precedent for the VP to accept an alternate slate of electors, were nearly gibberish.

In terms of his delivery, I am baffled. And, though this does not matter at all, I found it pompous and annoying.

[orleans]

53. "i found it pompous and annoying." -- you put it so politely

his delivery was driving me crazy.

i found it difficult to follow what he was saying because i was so distracted by his oh so PREGNANT & CONSTANT pauses.

so rather than paying attention to his words i started wondering "did he have a stroke?" "did he always speak this way?" "is he having a problem breathing?" "is he buying himself time b/c he doesn't know what to say?"

now i know; he thinks the rest of us are idiots who are unable to understand more than two or three spoken words at a time.

"pompous and annoying" -- absolutely!

[ProfessorGAC]

19. Totally Agree

I've testified as an expert witness in 6 major civil cases.
I was popular with the litigators as much because of my delivery as my expertise in the field.
They were confident in my ability during cross & felt i could sell to the jurors.
That's not a surmise. They told me so.
Delivery, demeanor, and unflappability are really important to trial lawyers.

[Ferrets are Cool]

68. Agreed

[Novara]

3. It says something about us that a lot of people had issues with his delivery

We're so damned used to instant everything.

His words needed to be measured.

And I, for one, am glad to have the chance to take stock of my sometimes-impatience and maybe learn to be a little bit more tolerant. What he said was important, and his deliberation in phrasing his speech left an indelible impression. I am pretty sure that's what he was going for.

[Alice Kramden]

7. Totally agree

It seems nowadays that if you aren't a fast talker, people think you're dimwitted

[LenaBaby61]

8. THIS 👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻

[llmart]

17. +1000

I, for one, am so over people who think the faster and louder they talk, the smarter they are.

I can't stand being around people who talk so fast it's as if they're hopped up on speed or something. They jump from one thought to the next. I always think it is a sign of a chaotic mind and/or a chaotic life, neither of which I want any part of. Most of the time I come away from them feeling unsettled.

[Alice Kramden]

21. Agree

The few times I have spoken in public, I have been thanked for enunciating clearly enough to be understood

[orleans]

54. but did your pauses distract some people to the degree that they couldn't follow what you were

saying?

that was the effect he was having on me.

i'm all for dramatic pauses but if it wasn't a health issue and done intentionally it was way over the top. i have been involved in the performing arts since i was a teenager. i worked as an actor and director. i've directed kids & teens & adults. i have no affinity for fast talkers.

by having a stream of continuous pregnant pauses the judge allowed his delivery to overshadow and overtake his words and the message he intended to convey. imo

[Alice Kramden]

62. I can see your point - it just didn't strike me that way

[callous taoboy]

61. You describe one of my brothers.

He used to be a laid back hippy but has turned MAGA, and now his speech patterns are, as you describe, chaotic, jumping from one thought to the next. He comes off as a huckster.

[llmart]

76. Wow. That's quite a change to go from laid back hippie to MAGA.

When I'm with my daughter, who is in her late 40's a the mother of a six-year old, it's not a relaxing visit because she is constantly moving and talking fast and criticizing other drivers for not going fast enough, etc. I give her a bit of a pass because she seems to be the only parent who does everything for their one child, but still. I am always thinking to myself, "I can't wait to get home to my quite little house."

[Me.]

27. ...

[ChazII]

65. +1 Totally agree.n/t

[pazzyanne]

73. Agree!!! nt

[LogicFirst]

4. I always knew when Mom was really, really angry.

She would measure . . . her . . . words. . . very . . . carefully.

[Alice Kramden]

6. That's it, exactly

I listened to him in real time and was absolutely riveted.

[Joinfortmill]

45. So was I

[pazzyanne]

74. As was I! nt

[dmr]

75. So was I.

I've listened to him twice more since he first spoke. Yes, it was riveting.

[Alice Kramden]

79. : )

[Rebl2]

38. Exactly!

He was trying to be deliberate, careful of what he said. He wanted to be sure people understood what he was saying and driving home his points in his testimony.
I noticed President Obama was that way at times when giving a speech. He was slow at times, I think to drive home his points he was making.

[Alice Kramden]

9. First time on TV, too -

Under pressure, wanting maximum clarity - I totally understand the deliberateness and gravity of his delivery

[WhiskeyGrinder]

10. He owes no one an explanation.

[livetohike]

18. Exactly. I appreciated his testimony and the care he

chose in saying what he said.

[BComplex]

11. Every single American should have listened to him on NPR today. He NAILED the republican

party. He called them out by name. He said this whole mess in this country is all on them.

[onetexan]

23. Spot on!! K&R

[mcar]

12. What a shame that he felt obligated to explain his cadence

to those overly judgmental people. I thought from the beginning he was measuring his words because he was very aware of history.

[SheltieLover]

13. Kicking for visibility

Ty!

[hlthe2b]

15. I get it. I listened carefully--about as carefully as he was choosing his words.

I am not accustomed to such a slow pattern of speech with the exception of the occasional long emphatic pause. But, his reputation was such that I intently listened. Hopefully, others did as well.

[Hortensis]

20. Same here.

[LoisB]

22. I didn't have any issue with his delivery.

[ShazzieB]

34. Neither did I!

I never understood what all the hooha was about, and I really don't understand why some people are still being so critical.

Yes, he was slow, slower than I would have preferred at times. My ADHD brain got the fidgets during some of those long pauses. But I found everything he said to be crystal clear and had no trouble following any of it.

In a situation like these hearings, each witness is going to express themselves in their own way, and not all of them are going to be polished public speakers or riveting communicators. They are there to contribute whatever information or insights they have to offer, not be entertaining or exciting to listen to. Luttig contributed some very important insights from his standpoint as a legal expert. Could he have done it in a more dynamic and engaging way? Sure. Was it necessary for him to do that? Absolutely not.

The man did the job he was there to do. I think it's just plain unfair to nitpick about whether he conformed to some arbitrary standard of the "correct" way to do it. YMMV, obviously.

[Dr. Shepper]

24. I am happy it was deliberate and

Last edited Sat Jun 18, 2022, 09:45 PM - Edit history (1)

Not because he was recovering from stroke (as the Twitter tumor mill implied).

ETA - that should have said rumor mill, but Twitter is a bit of a cancer so I think I’ll let it be.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

47. Same here

I had a stutter that only shows up a little when I am in college debate mode or tired. I actually got a Biden hug from Joe at a fund raiser where we discussed sutttering.

Judge Luttig's delivery was different from that of someone with a stroke or a stutter. It was intentionally deliberate and had the desired effect

[Deminpenn]

25. Judicial opinions are usually long and

carefully worded. Jmo, but Lutting spoke like he would write as a the judge he has been his entire life.

[Beetwasher.]

26. Cha Ching! As Long as Everyone's Talking About it

Intentional or not, people are gonna hear what he said if only because of this controversy. Which means, more people will hear what he said. I’m good with that.

[Marcuse]

28. He forced one to concentrate. Otherwise the beginning of his sentence was forgotten before the end.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

29. The pauses between words were more like

the . . . . . . . . pauses . . . . . . . . . . so . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . he . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . can . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .think.

If that's all as fast as his mind can think, that's scary. I would not want to be a passenger in his car if the vehicle ahead suddenly stops. While he was thinking that perhaps he should break, and then moving his foot with all deliberate speed to the brake, we'd all be dead.

It actually made it harder to follow what he was saying, because the many seconds long gaps between words made no real sense.

[3catwoman3]

30. I was not bothered by his delivery.

Would people have preferred a "Gym" Jordan display?

[Cha]

31. Thank you so much, LMPV! Judge Luttig

is so dedicated to us keeping our Democracy.

💙💛

[mentalsolstice]

32. As a retired attorney and former law student from the late 80s

I would’ve loved taking notes from a prof speaking that slowly, especially as a One L. And I would’ve saved money not buying all the crib notes!

[calimary]

48. Shit yeah! I was taking notes. And I write fast.

But I, too, thought it was something forced upon him by age or illness.

So now, we know!

It is, however, a useful device to suck people’s attention into what you want to say. All those gaps force the listener to work harder at listening!

[cloudboy07]

33. Did better than the 9 on the big bench !

[MuseRider]

35. That was almost exactly what I said.

He was measuring his words knowing how important they were.

As hard as it was to listen to it was absolutely important that he not mess it up.

[Fiendish Thingy]

36. His intentions may have been honorable, but the execution diluted the intentions

It was so bad that I perceived that the panel might have abandoned many of the questions the wanted to ask Luttig, and instead focused on Jacob.

[housecat]

37. Judge Luttig's presentation was different, not more not less, just different, and I will find it

easy to remember his words, which is the point of saying them. His message was important, and as long as people listened to his words, I doubt if it matters if they were spoken slowly or not. "Clear and present danger" is the point, and he made it well.

[judesedit]

39. He said, and repeated, that Drumpf and his lunatic followers are a danger to this country

That was his most important statement and warned us of the impending danger should the GOP become the majority again and if the white supremacists are not stopped now. Who cares how fast he said it? imho

[kentuck]

40. The gravity of the words delivered by Judge Lutting were delivered just right for the occasion...

...in my humble opinion.

[Handler]

41. Well done judge 👍

[Dysfunctional]

42. As I have written before, it was his cadence that made me realize how important his testimony was.

[Joinfortmill]

44. Yes, very powerful.

[Joinfortmill]

43. He was riveting, painstakingly deliberate, and he seemed both heartbroken and very, very angry.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

46. I am a former college debater where everyone speaks as fast as possible

I really appreciated Judge Luttig's presentation and understand why he presented his findings in such a deliberate fashion. This was history and there is no need to reduce his clips to sound bites for TV

[Tree Lady]

49. I thought maybe he was talking slow

Because he was a conflicted republican. Knew he had to tell the truth but sad at same time.

[Alice Kramden]

51. Good point

He was visibly saddened, but stalwart

[Cha]

50. Kick!

[MontanaMama]

52. I have absolutely no issue with now this man spoke to America.

His delivery made me sit up and listen. I’m really disappointed he’s been criticized. What he had to say was important and it was very compelling. I’d like to think people could listen to what he actually said instead of getting caught up in the other stuff. Bennie Thompson has also been criticized here on DU….also unfairly imho.

[BigmanPigman]

55. 8The first time that I heard him speak were normal to me.

When I read earlier on DU that he was really slow I watched it again and I still feel that he was speaking normally given the situation. Obama always puts care and thought into his words and I think this judge was doing the same thing. It impressed upon me the image of a truly intelligent, thoughtful and sincere patriot, not typical of the average consrvative these days.

Considering what he said and the situation the country is in, I'm almost glad he was deliberate. It emphasizes the serious danger we are facing. Viewers had time to process what he was saying and it was scary, especially coming from a person with his experience and position.

[ecstatic]

56. It was distracting for me. Hopefully it was an effective technique

for other listeners . At first I thought maybe he was bombing the appearance on purpose. Pulling a Mueller or something. Just my opinion.

[bigtree]

57. it's even more mind numbing reading him

...I really hate right wing righteousness, even when they're not blathering on about their discredited and disgraced ideology.

This man who was once thought to be Bush's Scalia is boring as fuck. I didn't need to hear any of what he said - I live in the real world - but I can only hope there's some dumb fuck republican voter somewhere that stepped away from FOX long enough to get something out of what he said.

[aggiesal]

58. He was parsing his words too carefully ...

to the point that I couldn't follow what point he was trying to make.
But if you read what he said, with the long pauses removed, it's easier to understand his point.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

60. This phrasing will be part of history

Link to tweet

[LetMyPeopleVote]

59. For this thread

Link to tweet

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1538266496371245057.html

Thank you so much for this thread, Mr. Hagan, @joehagansays. You almost presciently understood precisely what I was at least attempting to do to the best of my abilities during the hearing Thursday.

What you could not know, and did not know, but I will tell you now, is that I believed I had an obligation to the Select Committee and to the country, first to formulate . . . then to measure . . . and then . . . to meter out . . .
every . . . single . . . word . . . that I spoke . . . , carefully . . . exactingly . . . and . . . deliberately, so that the words I spoke were pristine clear and would be heard, and therefore understood, as such.

I believed Thursday that I had that high responsibility and obligation -- to myself, even if to no other. Also please bear in mind that Thursday was the first time in 68 years, to my knowledge, I had ever been on national television, let alone national television like that.

And though not scared, I was concerned that I do my very best and not embarrass myself, as I think anyone who found themselves in that frightening circumstance would be.

I decided to respond to your at once astute and understanding tweet finally this afternoon, because I have been watching the tweets all day suggesting that I am recovering from a severe stroke, and my friends, out of their concern for me and my family,
have been earnestly forwarding me these tweets, asking me if I am alright. Such is social media, I understand. But I profoundly believe in social media's foundational, in fact revolutionary, value and contribution to Free Speech in our country,
and for that reason I willingly accept the occasional bad that comes from social media, in return for the much more frequent good that comes from it -- at least from the vastly more responsible, respectful speech on those media.

That is why, 16 years after my retirement from the Bench, even then as a very skeptical, curmudgeonly old federal judge, I created a Facebook account and then a Twitter account -- slowly . . . very slowly . . . one account first . . . and then . . . followed . . . by the other.

All of this said, I am not recovering from a stroke or any other malady, I promise. Thankfully, I have never been as sick or as so debilitated as that ever in my life, and would not want that for anyone. Knock on wood, I have never even been really sick a day in my life.

I was more ready, prepared and intellectually focused (I had thought) during Thursday's hearing than I have ever been for anything in my life. I gather my face appeared "too red" for some on Twitter, betraying to them serious illness. The explanation was more innocent than that.

At the last minute, I had been able during the weekend preceding my testimony to help my daughter get settled into her new home, where the temperatures were in the upper 90s, and where I was appreciatively, though unwittingly, to get just a little bit of needed suntan!

What I will say, though, is this. And I think it explains it all. All my life, I have said (as to myself, and at times, by way of sarcastic prescription for others) that I never . . . talk . . . any . . . faster . . . than . . . my . . . mind . . . can . . . think.

I will proudly assure everyone on Twitter that I was riveted, laser-like as never before, on that promise to myself beginning promptly at the hour of 1:00 pm Thursday afternoon.

What is more, as consciously as one can be aware of something subconsciously, I was, in your poetic words of which I was, and am myself, incapable even of conjuring, Mr. Hagan, supremely conscious that,

[Paladin]

63. I'm glad he overdid it on the slow talk, for a couple of reasons:

1) He's from the enemy side; and

2) He's obviously a very smart individual.

I figured he had an age or medical problem.

[gibraltar72]

64. I posted here and elsewhere

He knew the gravity and thought over every word he uttered.

[cayugafalls]

66. The critique is more telling as to why the nation is "slow rolling" into fascism than anything else.

We are a nation of preconceived notions, centered on our self and awaiting the echo chamber to quickly bolster our viewpoint.

The fast paced lifestyle, paired with the instant, always on, easily searchable, a video for every opinion echo chamber creates a singular gestalt for whatever opinion any one person formulates as their given "life credo".

When a true thinker deliberates at a pace slower than the new "internet norm" the world goes stupid and sits in the corner going lalalala, for their brain is on overload as it tries to slow down and master that which has been lost, the art of thinking for oneself.

I personally applaud Judge Luttig. He made me slow down and think for myself.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

67. Based on some comments it seems

people are wanting to shoot the messenger.......

[The Jungle 1]

69. Which is exactly what I thought while listening.

He was being very careful. Good for him. His words were very important.

[Higherarky]

70. Patience,

Grasshoppers.

[BobTheSubgenius]

71. That, and though he is too judicious to say so,

he knew he was also addressing a great number of the hard-of-thinking.

[Martin68]

72. That's exactly what I thought he was doing. He wanted the deniers who were listening to fully

understand the importance of what he was saying to the survival of our democratic system. He wasn't speaking so deliberately for us, but for them.

[dai13sy]

77. Slow but Sure

I didn't mind his slow, deliberate speech. We shut up immediately, turned up the TV and computers just listened. My Husband I agreed the slow, steady speech was very deliberate. He was very clear and knowledgeable and made his points very clear.

[wryter2000]

78. He went a bit overboard

Esp at the beginning it was painful to wait…for…each…word.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

80. Judge Luttig knows that the Repub Party is a "clear and present danger" to our democracy

Link to tweet