Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4763: Donald Trump's bizarre and predatory behavior (that you probably didn't notice) during the debate handshake with VP Kamala Harris – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

There were multitudes of body language displays – as well as verbal and paralanguage behaviors – exhibited during their first handshake. One behavior in particular exhibited by Donald Trump during his handshake with Vice President Harris that was especially bizarre – did you see it?

The image shown above shows a wide-angle view of the behavior in question. 

... and here's a close-up of that same moment:

Donald Trump's right index finger is extended up onto the inside (volar aspect) of Vice President Harris' wrist. It's not gripping her hand as is the universal custom around the world.

When, upon meeting someone, we extend our hand, it's a form of implied consent (i.e., I'm extending my hand in an invitation of greeting in hopes [and expectation] that you extend yours, so that we may shake hands).

And although, in certain cultures and contexts there are exceptions, in most all countries and in most all contexts throughout the world, the implied consent by a handshake does not give further consent to other bodily touching.

Donald Trump extended his finger up Vice President Kamala Harris' wrist (between the cuff of her shirt and the cuff of her jacket) as a deliberate, invasive, predatory, and sexual innuendo – in an attempt to intimidate and unnerve the Vice President.

Regardless of the other oddities of this handshake (see below), this particular invasive touching is not a component of a normal or acceptable handshake by any stretch of the imagination.

Had the Vice President been wearing a shorter sleeve – or had she not been wearing a non-flexible bracelet, it would have allowed Trump to be even more invasive by touching further down the skin of her wrist.   

The wrist is a particularly sensitive area and a body part that should not be touched without consent.

The index finger on the dominant hand (Trump's right hand and, of course, the shaking hand by convention) is the most powerful digit on either hand. 

Moreover, the significance of an extended index finger as a phallic symbol in this context is entirely deliberate. And although it's certainly not sexual assault, it's absolutely intended to intimidate and make Vice President Harris feel violated. It is predatory.

If ever you've been on the receiving end of this variety of invasive handshake, you'll probably remember feeling creeped-out.

So while consent to touching the other person's hand in the context of a handshake is, of course, implied and expected – touching them in other places is not. In some countries and situations, there are exceptions, but this was certainly not one of them.

By Trump breaking this norm in this way gives him plausible deniability for violating personal space, trying to intimidate, and predatory behavior.

Now zoom-out and look at the relative positions of Trump's and Harris' hands and arms relative to their torsos. Trump virtually always pulls women's hands both upward and close to his upper torso/lower chest during handshakes:

Men who consistently shake other men's hands with this in-pulling and/or up-pulling are narcissistic and manipulative...

... And men who shake women's hands using this dynamic are not only narcissistic and manipulative – they're also misogynistic, objectifying the women, and have a predilection of violence toward women.

As has been widely pointed out, Trump did not anticipate a handshake from the Vice President, caught off-guard he hesitated, slowing his approach onto the stage, and was trying to decide whether to shake hands in front of or behind his lectern.
 

 

His hesitation (possibly momentary disorientation) was classic low confidence behavior – which further primed Trump toward a state of emotional discomfort.

There are some who might say that by walking slowly, Trump forced Harris into a subordinate position – necessitating her to approach him. This is incorrect.

In this context, Harris' pace, energy, and early start on stage exemplified Harris' energy and initiative – in a word: Presidential.

Vice President Harris also spoke first – introducing herself with a confident and assertive tone as well as with proper volume saying, "Kamala Harris. Let's have a good debate", while Trump mumbled, "Nice to see ya [sic]. Have fun." Harris answered back, "Thank you."

While there are exceptions, in the vast majority of situations, and certainly in a debate scenario, if you want to project authority and confidence (i.e., be presidential), initiate the handshake – and introduce yourself. Donald Trump did neither of these.

Trump physically hesitated, mumbled, and took refuge behind his lectern.

And you've probably heard – until the debate, these two had never met (Note: because Donald Trump chose not to attend the 2020 Presidential Inauguration).

SUMMARY:  Donald Trump, directed his index finger down-the-wrist of VP Kamala Harris. This was a sexual innuendo. This was predatory. It was an invasive and deliberate attempt to unnerve and intimidate the Vice President. It didn't work.

Trump's standard handshake MO of pulling a woman's hand-arm both disproportionately toward him as well as upward indicates his:

• Narcissism
• Manipulative personality

• Misogyny
• Objectification of women
• Predilection of violence toward women

Trump was caught off-guard by Harris' approach, strength, assertiveness, and authority. She was presidential and he was not. He hesitated, walked slowly, retreated behind his lectern, mumbled, spoke with low-volume, and never introduced himself. ...

Inquiries re consulting, teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4762: Donald Trump asked if he would denounce Bomb Threats in Springfield, Ohio – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

On Saturday 14 Sept. 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada, Donald Trump was asked: "Do you denounce the bomb threats in Springfield, Ohio?"

What follows is a body language, paralanguage and statement analysis of his response to that question.

Donald Trump: "Ahhh, I don't know what happened, ahhh, with thee [sic] ahhh, bomb threats. I know that it's been taken over by, ahhh, allegal [sic] migrants, and it's a terrible thing that happens."

Trump continues: "... Springfield was this beautiful town – and now they're goin' through hell. It's a [pause] sad thing."

One nonverbal behavior that immediately jumps out is Donald Trump opening his eyelids wide (particularly his left eye as his right eyelid is more 'droopy' [mild-moderate ptosis, most likely age-related]).

It's crucial to note this evanescent eyelid opening occurs *after* the words "bomb threats" are spoken – but *before* the words "Springfield, Ohio". This sudden eyelid opening signifies an adrenaline surge (and, specifically, in this context indicating fear).

Trump immediately blinks (anxiety), then closing his eyes, he rapidly rotates his head to his right (moving away from the journalist) as he says, "Ahhh, I don't know ...".

Note that Trump rotates his head even further to his right [and even more so away from the reporter], in the second portion of this sentence, "...what happened, ahhh, with thee [sic] ahhh, bomb threats..."

Trump *really* doesn't want to look at the reporter (his eyelid closure, blinking, turning away) – are all variations of diminished eye contact – prevalent behaviors during deception and whilst trying to maintain clandestine acts.

As Trump says, "I know that it's been taken over by, ahhh, allegal [sic] migrants" – he rotates his head, so that he's again facing the reporter. During this time, his eyes progressively open back up again, while still blinking with increased frequency over his baseline (anxiety).  

 

 
Trump's mispronunciation of "illegal" as "allegal" is also notable. As he speaks this word, Trump displays a microexpression of disgust. (Trump's fourth "ahhh" in this brief statement is spoken immediately prior to him saying, "allegal").

It's crucial to point out that the expression of disgust was the most common emotion displayed by Nazi staff at concentration camps during WWII (followed closely in frequency by their expressions' of contempt).

Notice too, how Trump stretches-out his pronunciation word "the" (99.9+% of the time it's pronounced with a short e, unstressed, 'schwa' sound) into a "thee" pronunciation (stressed vowel, long e).

Such syllable-stretching is often correlated with time-stalling behaviors – as well as during deception.

Note also Trump's multiple "ahhhs" (four times in just 5.4 seconds) – another indication of anxiety, in addition to a common method of stalling for time while attempting to formulate an answer. 

Trump's "thee" is in fact, sandwiched in between two "ahhhs" ("...ahhh, with thee [sic] ahhh ...") – which, in this context, is amplifying his other signals of deception.

Note Trump's very first reflex is to deny any knowledge of bomb threats – rather than denouncing these acts – or expressing sadness, frustration, or anger at those who perpetrated these felonious acts. In fact he still hasn't denounced these bomb threats.

The journalist was not accusing Trump of the bomb threats, but given Trump's response, we should think so – because his first impulse is to deny having any knowledge of the event (which absolutely no one believes). 

Denying knowledge of an event of common knowledge has an extremely high correlation with deception.

Notice too, as Trump says, "...taken over by...", he elevates up on his toes (Note Trump's head elevates along with his shoulders). This is one manifestation of an adrenaline surge. Why the surge in Trump's adrenaline?

It's a common tactic to deny knowledge of an event whilst lying, however Donald Trump claims naïvaté much more frequently when the question is suggestive of or overlaps with an element of his racism.

SUMMARY: Donald Trump's behavior during this brief exchange is more than racist political rhetoric or routine political deception...

Yes, Trump lied (of course he knew about the bomb threats in Springfield, OH) – but for someone so very accustomed to lying (esp. re crucial issues), his heightened fear and adrenaline surges during his answer are red-lights-flashing-sirens-blaring-level-suspicious...

... Trump's behavior strongly suggests he had foreknowledge of the bomb threats in Springfield Ohio – or some other similar event regarding another bombing/bomb threat.

Inquiries regarding consulting, teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4757: Donald Trump Handshake with Benjamin Netanyahu: "When I think about you, I touch myself" (apologies to Divinyls) – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

 

Donald Trump met with War Criminal and Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago today. Along with violating the Logan Act, Trump exhibited some bizarre body language behavior.

 

 
At first glance, you may think this Trump-Netanyahu handshake is an example of a "double-hander" – such as the one exemplified here, from Trump and Kim Jong Un's meeting on 30 June 2019. But you'd be very wrong...

Look carefully at Trump's left hand – his left hand is on top of his *own* right hand – and Netanyhu's hand is on the bottom.

While this is another example of Trump's attempt at dominance –  it's also extremely over-compensatory that betrays his profound narcissism. But there's other thought-emotions going on here ...

Trump's right hand is already on top of Netanyahu's – so Trump was already displaying dominance. The meeting is taking place in the US (Trump's country, not Netanyahu's) – and at Mar-a-Lago (Trump's "home") – Yet Trump still feels the need for additional dominance.

But why is Trump touching *his own* hand in this moment? This dynamic is profoundly Narcissistic. Trump is showing us that he would rather touch himself (during a handshake!) than touch Netanyahu (which also shows his distrust of Netanyahu). 

Additionally and perhaps most importantly, covering one's right hand (Trump's dominant hand) with the left hand is indicative of his surreptitious behavior.
 

This handshake variation is quite odd – even for Trump. It's also quite rare. So rare that you'll probably never see it again (except perhaps from Trump again).

SUMMARY: Donald Trump's bizarre self-touching handshake with Benjamin Netanyahu today indicates:

•  Trump's attempt at Dominance 
•  Trump's extreme Narcissism

•  Trump's distrust of Netanyahu

•  Clandestine behavior of Trump's

11 of 11/  Inquiries regarding teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, consulting, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com  

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4755: Nikki Haley's endorsement of Donald Trump – and his reaction – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

 

No doubt you've heard – last night, at the Republican National Convention, Nikki Haley endorsed Donald Trump. What follows is a Body Language Analysis of a crucial portion of her speech.

In the video above, we see Nikki Haley saying, "I'll start by making one thing perfectly clear – Donald Trump has my strong endorsement period."

Notice as she says, "...my strong endorsement period" (and for about a second thereafter), Haley is shaking her head side-to-side – the (nearly world-wide) signal for 'No' or 'I disagree'.

 

 
Haley's nonverbal display is directly contradictory to her words.

Whenever the body language disagrees with the verbal language – it's the body language that tells the true thought-emotions.

 
Now note Trump's reaction. He immediately displays a contempt expression.

The contempt is on the left side (his left) of his face. His eyelids, partially closed – while not a required component of a contempt display, this partial lid closure in this context is a contempt amplifier.

Followed shortly thereafter by a Tight Tongue Jut (signaling disgust, disdain, repulsion).

 
He then looks down and to his right, the quadrant of gaze toward which people most often look during moments of deception.

SUMMARY:  Nikki Haley lied when she said "I'll start by making one thing perfectly clear – Donald Trump has my strong endorsement period".

 

Moreover, Donald Trump feels contempt, disdain, disgust, and repulsion toward Haley. In addition, Trump believes Haley lied. 

Inquiries regarding teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, consulting, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com  

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4754: Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein – A Dangerous, Duplicitous, and Predatory 'Smile' – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

 

Note the peculiarities in the above image of Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump. Both such set-off your internal alarm bells. Neither of these facial expressions are sincere smiles. Far from it...

The lateral aspects of each man's lips are being pulled-in, they're not visible – while their central lips are pronounced, pooching forward. These are not anatomical idiosyncrasies. These expressions are behavioral, momentary, and fleeting.

This is a (relatively uncommon to rare) variation of a forward lip purse (clandestine plans, undisclosed disagreement) – but with an additional layer of warning: indicating predatory and malicious intent. 
 

Two actors come to mind who use this expression to their advantage when portraying evil and sadistic characters – Jim Carrey's version of the 'before Grinch'. ...

... And Benedict Cumberbatch as Star Trek's Khan Noonien Singh.

 

 

While each of these theatrical examples are hyperbolic, and those of Trump and Epstein are less extreme, the ramifications of real world behaviors hold much more horror.

SUMMARY: When the central lips are protruding forward with a simultaneous pulling-inward of the lateral lips (resulting in an absence/near-absence of the lateral lips), this is a red-flag for predatory intent.

Inquiries regarding teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, consulting, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com  

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4753: Donald Trump denying calling fallen military heroes "suckers and losers" – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

On Saturday 22 June 2024, during his event in Washington DC, Donald Trump defended accusations against him calling US military members "suckers and losers".

What follows are body language and statement analyses of this video clip. 

Above is a shorter segment of Trump's behavior in this context. Here's a longer segment of this same statement/speech:

Note, in the first 2/3rds of the sentence, "I was better than any president ever to our military", Trump is retracting (flexing) the index finger (forefinger) of his right hand at the first joint past the knuckle (the proximal interphalangeal joint).

 

Trump is right-handed. With respect to body language, the index finger of the dominant hand is the most powerful and dominant digit on either hand.

In general, *without any accompanying spoken words* – retracting a hand (especially the dominant hand) and/or the index finger on either hand signals low confidence and high emotional discomfort. ... 

...But, *when making a statement or answering a question* while retracting the most dominant digit on the dominant hand – is an extremely high indicator of lying. This is a common tell during deception – particularly with Trump.

If we look a few seconds earlier, as he says, "I'm the exact [self-interruption]", Trump briefly displays the same dominant index finger retraction body language.

 

 

Even earlier in the video he displays this once again as he says, "by a third rate magazine". Trump is lying and does not believe this to be true.

 

It's important to contrast this with other occasions during this same clip, when Trump's hand was oppositely configured – retracting (flexing) all the other digits on his right hand while extending his dominant index finger (aka index finger pointing).

Index finger pointing is hyper-dominant and offensive. It's negatively received across all cultures. But, not surprisingly, it's *frequently* used by those with manipulative and pathological personalities. 

Now contrast these two body language signals. The dominant-finger-retraction-tell (retracting dominance) has the opposite configuration of an index finger point (projecting dominance).
 

 

 

Did you notice Trump's facial expression at about 1 second before the very end of this video? He displays a Tight Tongue Jut – signaling his disdain, disgust, and repulsion.
 

Be careful not to confuse a Tight Tongue Jut with a Loose Tongue Jut or a Wide Open Tongue Jut – as these indicate completely different thought-emotions.

During the entire speech, in his effort to refute the story, when referring to the fallen military heroes, Trump repeated "suckers and losers" multiple times.

This is a common sadist's/manipulator's trick – under the guise of defending themselves, they poke the original wound over and over.

Thereby giving themselves license to repeat their original insult several times and re-inflicting verbal injury – whilst they're experiencing sadistic joy.

Moreover, note that Donald Trump *never* speaks John Kelly's name (his first Chief-of-Staff) as the source/witness of the accusations. He only mentions "The Atlantic" Magazine who printed the story.

Trump then outs himself again – for while maligning "The Atlantic" magazine, referring to (but not naming outright) Laurene Powell Jobs (Steve Jobs' widow), he says, "They got lucky, they got some sucker to fund it for a little while, some stupid sucker."  

So in the very midst of his denying calling fallen military "suckers and losers", Trump proceeds to twice call a widow a "sucker" as well as "dumb" and "stupid" – while showing profound disrespect toward another deceased person – Steve Jobs.

This is a massive Freudian slip and self-own. Trump is saying he would never say these things about the dead – and then while defending himself, he openly disrespects the dead and calls someone else a "sucker".

The importance of the word "sucker" in these contexts cannot be overstated.

A person who *repeatedly* sees others as "suckers" is a con man. 

To add insult to injury, Trump says, "she took his money". This level of misogyny is light years beyond the pale.

Trump also displays another Tight Tongue Jut (disdain, disgust, repulsion) after he says, "you dumb – I shoulda never ..." (directed at Laurene Powell Jobs).

Contrast this against the Loose Tongue Jut (§) that Trump displayed when he said "I woulda said that woulda [sic] been, ahhh [§], justified for somebody to start taking swings at me – as president".

A Loose Tongue Jut indicates:

• Deception
• "I've been bad"
• "I just said/about to say a stupid thing"
• "I've been/about to be caught"

Note also, Trump *never* says "I didn't say that" (or similar). He doesn't deny it. Instead he says, "Who would do such a thing?", and "You say it's not true" (not, "It's not true"), and "Who would say it?" 

When Trump also says, "There's nobody that's stupid enough to make that statement" – he's angry at himself for being this "stupid" – to let his true feelings be shown, especially to John Kelly (whose son was killed in battle in Afghanistan).

Trump fears John Kelly.

Trump also said, "Even if you hated the military, you wouldn't say that".

This is another example of Trump, while under the guise of defending himself – stating what he actually thinks and how he truly feels.

When Trump said, "Looking down, at graves, saying suckers, they make it up, suckers and losers", he is reliving his original disparaging events at Arlington National Cemetery and at Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France.
 

Trump's palm-down, fingers splayed display is a dominant display of subjugation and control. He is painting a false scenario – Trump is reliving these actual cemetery events (as he again calls them "suckers and losers"). 

 

 

SUMMARY: While we can certainly fact-check this story by other means (John Kelly, you're long overdue for a video interview), Donald Trump's body language tells us General Kelly's account of the facts are true: Trump did call fallen military heroes "suckers and losers".

Moreover, Donald Trump feels disdain, disgust, and repulsion toward – as well as subjugation and control over – members of the military.

Trump also fears John Kelly.

Additionally, Trump also feels disdain, disgust, and repulsion toward Laurene Powell Jobs. He also demonstrates deep misogyny toward Ms. Powell Jobs – as well as exhibiting a profound disrespect toward Steve Jobs. 

While in the very act of trying to refute allegations of him calling fallen military heroes "suckers and losers", Trump uses some of the exact same language ("sucker") toward Ms. Powell Jobs and profoundly disrespects the deceased (Steve Jobs). Trump is telling on himself.

Inquiries regarding teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, consulting, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com  

Ω

Body Language and Behavior Analysis No. 4752: Jim Jordan responds to Jamie Raskin re Jordan's ignoring his Subpoena from the January 6th Committee – Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence

Last week, the Republican House voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in Contempt of Congress for not releasing the audio of President Biden's interview with Robert Hur. They have been in possession of the official transcript of this interview for months.

216 Republicans voted for the Contempt of Congress charges against Merrick Garland: 206 Democrats and 1 Republican (Dave Joyce, OH-14) voted against contempt (One Republican and 7 Democrats did not vote).

What follows is a body language analysis of the above, crucial portion of Jim Jordan's response to Jamie Raskin today on the House Floor where Raskin called Jordan out for his ignoring of the January 6th Committee's subpoena. 

Anyone can fact check Jim Jordan here. Jordan is telling a blatant and verifiable lie. There is ample and well-documented history on this account.

Jordan refused to testify before the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack and he was referred to the DOJ for criminal investigation. 

But if this were a different person – or Jim Jordan's history was an unknown quantity, what clues does his body language reveal regarding his true thoughts and feelings during this response?

Immediately prior, Rep. Jamie Raskin had called out Jim Jordan and others – for holding Merrick Garland in Contempt of Congress, while pointing out to Jordan, et. al., had themselves refused to testify before the January 6th Committee when they had been subpoenaed.

Note Jordan's initial nonverbal response as he says, "Mr. Speaker, first of all, I never said, 'I wouldn't testify in front of the January 6th Committee'...", he is pointing at Rep. Jamie Raskin with his left index finger. 

 

 
Jim Jordan is right-handed. If he truly believed his own words in this moment, he would be pointing with his dominant hand, not his non-dominant hand.

He does not believe his own words. Jordan is lying.

Notice also, the diminutive configuration his right hand simultaneously holds. His dominant index finger is retracted (low confidence, emotional discomfort, deception) whilst his left (non-dominant) index finger feigns self-righteousness.

 

Moreover, Jordan does not hold his left hand still while pointing at Rep. Raskin, rather he simultaneously shakes it. This combination of body language is known as a 'finger-point-hand-chop'.

 
In addition, did you also notice that Jordan's eyelids are closed as he's left (non-dominant) index finger pointing? Extended duration blinking is a form of diminished eye contact (deception, distancing, shame). 

 

Whenever a person is being confronted with a lie or wrongdoing, and while pushing-back against their accuser/the accusation, if they're using a finger-point-hand-chop, there's an extremely high likelihood that they're lying.

Notice too Jordan's subsequent words, "... I just wanna know what the parameters of that, that testimony were gonna be ..." – Jordan uses both the past (were gonna be) and present tense (just wanna know) in the same sentence. Jordan also stutters (that, that). 

The mixing of tenses – as well as stuttering in a non-stutterer, while interpreted in isolation do not indicate deception, they're both reliable indicators of anxiety.

A moment later, Jim Jordan does recruit his dominant (right) hand, momentarily pointing with both index fingers – but now he's displaying a two-handed finger-point-hand-chop.

Jordan then reverts back to a primarily left (non-dominant) finger point (again, with another finger-point-hand-chop), while his right (dominant) hand, although still pointing, retreats to a much lower, subordinate position. 

 
Although Jordan does eventually recruit his right hand into his gesturing, his (non-dominant) left hand/left index finger was his initial hand/finger of preference, and it continued to play the dominant role in his nonverbal behavior.

SUMMARY: Jim Jordan's displays classic body language of deception in response to his being called out as guilty of committing Contempt of Congress while he accuses Merrick Garland of the same.

Inquiries regarding teaching (one-on-one or groups), keynotes, consulting, and press: Jack@BodyLanguageSuccess.com  

Ω