WASHINGTON — A lot was said on stage at Wednesday night’s Republican presidential debate — but a lot more could be gleaned than what wasn’t, D.C.-based body language expert Chris Ulrich exclusively told The Post.
“At the end of the day, people won’t always remember what you said,” he said.
“They will remember how you speak, how you appear, and how present you are in certain moments.”
Some of the best indicators of leadership potential have little to do with the words spoken.
Instead, candidates in the second Republican debate of the 2024 campaign are challenged to balance two key factors: confidence and likability, Ulrich said.
“They are trying to do two things: One, meet as efficiently and effectively as they can sit in the president’s chair,” he said. “And then in the same vein, the other thing voters are looking for is: ‘Are you likable? Can I trust you?’
“What we see is openness versus closedness in our body language or increased anxiety or calmness,” he said.
Republican presidential candidate and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley delivers remarks during the Fox Business Republican primary debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on September 27, 2023, in Simi Valley, California Getty Images
“What body language does is it helps us judge if they’re able to handle stress, if they’re showing us anxiety or if they’re emotionally upset,” he said.
‘Powerful’ Nikki Haley
Nikki Haley’s performance on Wednesday evoked confidence and relatability through her firm answers and assertive gestures and posture, Ulrich said.
While making the eyes, the 51-year-old uses a cutting motion — as if he’s cutting through noise — which the expert says helps him see as “very focused” and “powerful.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis makes his point during the Republican presidential primary debate on Sept. 27, 2023. AP
Ulrich said the former U.N. ambassador also appeared “effervescent” with confidence when attacked by other candidates on stage, including Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), 58, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, 45, and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, 38.
“One of the things he was willing to do was accept it,” he said. “When he was interrupted, he didn’t stop talking.”
Before giving his answer, he would confront the candidate who launched the attack, put his shoulder to shoulder and lock eyes with him.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie listens during the second Republican presidential primary debate in Simi Valley, California, on September 27, 2023.AFP via Getty Images
“What he does effectively – he turns his whole body towards the person, and it’s quite confrontational,” he said. “When we turn our backs on the crowd and do a full circle, it’s more confrontational. It raises the stakes.”
Ulrich also noted that Haley’s smile looked “genuine,” grinning after her name was called — unlike other candidates’ plastered smiles.
Still, he showed some trepidation in a key moment when Scott challenged Haley’s experience, calling her time in the South Carolina governor’s mansion insufficient.
“Tim Scott calls it a little … and you watch him as he looks at it and we see an increase in the blink rate,” Ulrich said, explaining that the average person blinks 15 to 25 times a minute — or more than 50 under stage lights.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum speaks during the second Republican presidential primary debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on September 27, 2023. AFP via Getty Images
“This is Tim Scott’s moment and potential attack when we see his flashing rate increase. I think in five seconds, he blinked, like, eight to 10 times — so if we add it up, it’s almost 100 times in a minute,” he added.
A calmer Tim Scott
After getting the first question of the night, Tim Scott was more vocal during Thursday’s debate than in last month’s showdown, earning more speaking time.
“Tim Scott is more relaxed in his body language. He’s calm,” Ulrich said. “He’s trained, maybe, but he finds a lot of comfort in his body language and the pace of his speech.”
Still, Ulrich wondered if Scott’s development in the second debate was too far removed from his stiffer appearance in the first debate.
“I think it’s a better debate for him, but does it get the Goldilocks effect?” he said. “Is it too much [change] this time from the first debate?”
Scott struggled when interrupted by other candidates on stage, who easily controlled the conversation, Ulrich said.
“This is one of the factors that hurt Tim Scott in those moments of disruption – he would eventually shut up,” he said. “We saw it with Jeb Bush when he was fighting with (Donald) Trump, and that hurt him at the time.”
“This is Tim Scott’s best debate, but there are times when he gets interrupted by DeSantis, Haley, (Mike) Pence or Ramaswamy and he goes back and forth,” he added.
Vivek Ramaswamy laughs
Vivek Ramaswamy — who saw a significant jump in the polls following the first debate — was the target of many attacks by his opponents during Wednesday’s debate.
Although he excels in openness and enthusiasm, Ramaswamy may have erred by reacting too blithely to repeated attacks by other candidates.
While Ulrich said candidates are often trained to laugh off opponents’ attacks, Ramaswamy might benefit from a little stand-up or two.
“It’s important to laugh at him, but at a certain point, it would be good to see him come back and say, ‘Hey, enough is enough,'” he said. “We saw him do that a little bit, but not enough.”
“So he got hit so I think he was hurt a little bit tonight,” he added.
Vivek Ramaswamy speaks during the second debate of the Republican candidates for the 2024 presidential campaign in Simi Valley, California, September 27, 2023. REUTERS
However, the 38-year-old’s ear-to-ear grin seen in the first debate shone through on Wednesday night, showing confidence.
Still, Ulrich has some pointers for Ramaswamy should he take part in the next debate.
“He would tilt his head when he was trying to be serious,” Ulrich said. “For him, I’d like to see him be more careful and then lean when he tries to connect with the American people.”
Ron DeSantis’ strained smile
As for Ron DeSantis, Ulrich said, smiling “it’s not his.”
The Florida governor’s wry smile – which has become popular in internet memes – returned on Wednesday night as he tried to appear more attractive after criticism of his likeability.
While DeSantis was “technically and tactically very effective” in his argument, Ulrich said he continued to lack relevance in Wednesday’s debate with a “forced” smile.
“It’s not a normal smile — he’s not using the corners of his mouth, there’s no crow’s feet,” Ulrich said. “He has a problem with it.”
The governor showed his greatest strength toward the end of the debate, when he slowed down and addressed issues that seemed to make him more comfortable, Ulrich said.
“The only time we literally see the slowdown is at the end of the debate. In the last half hour, we saw a calmer DeSantis, a clearer DeSantis,” Ulrich said. “But in the beginning, he swayed back and forth, never smiling. And he has the biggest problem – love.”
When attacked, Ulrich said, DeSantis and Haley responded confidently — but their faces gave away their inner thoughts.
“They’ll do this lip compression like they don’t like what they’re seeing or what they’re hearing,” he said. “We often think that the eyes are the windows of the soul, but the lips are the windows of the soul. They reveal more information – just as much, if not more, information than the eyes.”
Chris Christie’s water cooler moment
Chris Christie, 61, looked remarkably calm Thursday night, slumped over the podium in a shot-from-the-hip approach, Ulrich said.
The former New Jersey governor has suffered in the GOP polls because of his repeated attacks on Trump, but that didn’t stop him from making one of the most memorable comments of the night — calling the former president “Donald Duck” for skipping both . Republican debate.
Chris Christie is suffering in the GOP polls because of his repeated attacks on Trump leading the way. Reuters
At that moment, Ulrich said, Christie was beaming with powerful hand gestures. As she delivered her attack on the 77-year-old Trump from behind a TV screen, Christie pointed her finger pointedly at the camera to emphasize her point.
“As if you’ve ever seen that ‘Uncle Sam wants you’ poster [from World War II],” Ulrich said. “He said to Donald Trump, ‘Show up or shut up.'”
Not ‘president’ Mike Pence
Former Vice President Mike Pence’s fast-talking and serious demeanor played well in the first Republican debate, Ulrich said.
“He’s a recognizable entity, and in the last debate, he was more presidential,” Ulrich said. “When he speaks, he slows down and delivers his lines.”
But on Wednesday, Ulrich said, he saw that characteristic backsliding on the debate stage, as Pence, 64, fumbled what he said at times.
Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks during the second Republican presidential primary debate. AFP via Getty Images
“Today he stepped over himself – he couldn’t get his words out,” Ulrich said. “And so that awkwardness hurts him.”
The awkwardness worsened during the debate when Pence forced a quip to make himself seem more likable or trend on social media.
“When he throws in a joke and it goes flat, he waits for a while, and it looks awkward,” Ulrich said. “It undermines him as president.”
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‘Thanks for playing, Doug Burgum’
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, 67, did little to raise his status during Wednesday’s debate, almost out of the picture as he failed to muster valuable screen time, Ulrich observed.
“For Doug, it was like, ‘Thanks for playing, Doug,'” Ulrich said, noting that at times, Burgum had to wave his hand to get the moderator’s attention. “I mean, he had to force himself to argue because he got so few questions.”
But when Burgum got a question, he failed to come across with confidence because he “rushed to answer it,” Ulrich said.
“He talks so fast.”
Who won the body language debate?
While all the candidates showed confidence throughout the debate, Ulrich said that ultimately there was no clear winner Wednesday night because they failed to present themselves as real threats to the current Republican and Democratic front-runners.
“You can make the argument that there is no alternative to (President) Biden or Trump,” he said. “At the end of the day, these guys are trying to ‘survive the island’ — and the question is, ‘Do they resonate with the American people?’ — not just from what they say, but how they appear.”
In the upcoming debate, the candidates will be challenged to differentiate themselves from Trump – who has maintained his commanding lead in the polls throughout the 2024 campaign.
That could be more difficult if the former president continues to sit out future GOP debates.
“Are the people at this debate coming out in a way that will, at the end of the day, have the American people and Republican voters saying, ‘I’ve seen on this debate stage an alternative to President Trump’?” Ulrich asked.
“I’m not sure.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
