A regular contributor to a local radio talk show is a basically conservative professor of Rhetoric at a local university. He continues to insist that Obama is a great speech maker.
Besides not listening to Obama, I can no longer listen to this “expert”, but I did glean from his comments that good rhetoric includes, apparently, being able to present both/all sides of an issue.
Well, Obama has been good at saying nothing in such a convoluted way, that a large number of listeners believe that they are hearing a message that they want to hear.
If that is good “rhetoric”, then give me passionately bad rhetoric from a speaker who has a true message to give, not a three-card monte game of words.
There’s the rub with people wanting an eloquent leader. Bedazzled by words and delivery that never match up with the actions. Thinking back to people like Winston Churchill, who cared deeply about what words he spoke, you knew that he believed what he said, and he followed through. No surprises. His words weren’t used to hide the truth about his values and character regarding how to lead the country. If Barry told people straight out what he truly believed about leading America, it would be so terrifying, he would never have been elected. There I go stating the obvious again.