There's one crucial expression Donald Trump never once displayed during any of his statements regarding the recent mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
It's certainly an expression he should have made - for it's indicative of the emotions of sadness, grief - and importantly, the empathy one feels for other peoples' suffering. This is true regardless of whether their suffering is emotional, physical, or both.
First, look carefully at the image below. On the evening of 28 January 1986, Ronald Reagan gave a speech regarding the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster (the video of the entire speech is included at the bottom of this article).
Note that the muscles of President Reagan's central forehead are contracted and vectored upward (an elevated central forehead contraction [CFC]). Simultaneously, his medial (inner) eyebrows are also elevated - while at the same time, his outer (lateral) eyebrows are lowered. The corners of his mouth are also down-turned.
Regardless of your political affiliation, if you were watching President Reagan's speech that night, you had no doubt Ronald Reagan was truly grieving for the families and loved-ones of those seven Astronauts. It's also not surprising (to those with modest or high empathy quotients) that just by looking at a picture or video of another person who is sad, suffering, or grieving (without even knowing any specifics) - will engender those same emotions in the viewer.
Grieving is absolutely necessary for healing. When a leader grieves, they give both a momentary and historical personification to our collective grieving. It's in these moments when our grief is shared that perhaps we're most human.
SUMMARY: Donald Trump has never displayed any expression indicative of empathy, sadness, or grieving - associated with the deaths of eleven people and wounding of six others at recent Tree of Life Synagogue mass shooting. Nor did the President display these expressions after the Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting, the Charlottesville Riots and the death there of Heather Heyer, the Texas First Baptist Church massacre, the Las Vegas mass shooting, or any other national tragedy.
Empathy, by definition, is never conveyed via a simple reading of a prepared statement. Empathy must be felt and must be displayed. Donald Trump has yet to publicly display any expressions of empathy, sadness, or grieving since he announced his candidacy on 16 June 2015.
Group Appearances and One-on-One
Online Courses Available
See also:
Body Language Analysis No. 4354: Mass Shooter at Pittsburgh Synagogue - Threat Assessment
Body Language Analysis No. 4352: Donald Trump, Mohammed bin Salman, and Journalist Jamal Khashoggi
Body Language Analysis No. 4350: Ashley Kavanaugh during Brett Kavanaugh's Swearing-in Ceremonies for the Supreme Court
Body Language Analysis No. 4348: Kavanaugh Confirmation Hearings - Part II
Body Language Analysis No. 4346: Brett Kavanaugh's Fox News Interview
Body Language Analysis No. 4343: Idris Elba, Kate Winslet, Anxiety, and Empathy
Body Language Analysis No. 4333: Ivanka Trump's response to Robert Mueller and Trump Tower Meeting
Body Language Analysis No. 4308: DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen's most Telling Expression
Body Language Analysis No. 4289: A Royal Wedding, Suppression of Tears, and Meghan Markle's Mom
________________________
