Decoding Donald Trump's words
Here's a link to A.M. Rosenthal's column in today's NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/15/opinion/campaign-stops/decoding-donald-trump.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region®ion=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=0
The column contrasts the use of language by Mr. Trump and Secretary Clinton. In brief, to Mr. Trump, words have fluid meanings and he doesn't need logical coherency when he speaks. Secretary Clinton, instead, has very specific meanings for her thoughts and choice of words.
Particularly interesting were these comments from James Lee:
"Intellectuals use words to express ideas, coherent thoughts designed to describe or analyze the real world... Because intellectuals use words to communicate substantive thoughts, they naturally assume everyone else follows the same practice...
"Trump, however, employs verbal communication to provoke visceral emotional reactions from his followers. The actual words used may shift in meaning or convey no intellectually coherent message...
"This approach to communication insulates Trump against rational critiques. His capacity to associate the foreign origin of people or beliefs with a threat to America does not depend on facts..."
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