Body Language Analysis No. 3938: Donald Trump regarding asking James Comey for his Loyalty - Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

During his recent (12 May 2017) interview on Fox, Donald Trump was asked by Jeanine Pirro about his allegedly asking James Comey, for Comey's loyalty. This interview took place three days after the President fired the FBI Director.

What follows is a transcript of this portion of the interview, followed by a partial nonverbal and paralanguage analysis.

JEANINE PIRRO: People suggest that the question that - apparently The York Times is selling, that you asked Comey, whether or not you had his loyalty was - possibly inappropriate. W-, could you see how people could think that?

DONALD TRUMP (over-talking): No, I don't think, I read, I read that article. I don't think it's approp, inappropriate. The mor- [inaudible]

JEANINE PIRRO (over-talking): Did you ask that question?

DONALD TRUMP: No. No, I didn't. But I don't think it would be a bad question to ask. I think - loyalty to the country, loyalty to the United States is important. You know, I mean it depends on how you define a-, loyalty. Number one. Number two, I don't know how that got there - because - I didn't ask that question. 

JEANINE PIRRO: What about the idea that - in a tweet, you said that there might be tape recordings, well -

DONALD TRUMP (over-talking): Well - that I can't talk about. I won't talk about that. All I want is for Comey to be honest, and I hope he will be, and I'm sure he will be, I hope.

During 0:31, as he says, "... because - I didn't ask that question ...", President Trump's face takes on an expression of forced (acted) incredulity. Thin-slicing this moment further:

• Donald Trump's central forehead contracts and elevates (although significantly blunted secondary to the effects of Botox) 
• His mouth configures in a hyperbolic, feigned smile (pulled more laterally rather than vertically, it's also asymmetrical - biased to his right side)
• Simultaneously he glances, very briefly, up to HIS Left 

Donald Trump very rarely displays an elevated central forehead contraction (Elevated CFC). But when he does, his mouth is always displaying a partial, albeit false, smile component. In this particular example, his mouth display not only does not show any upper teeth (e.g., as with sincere smiles), moreover his mouth is melodramatically morphed. His forehead and mouth cluster display is an example of forced (acted) incredulity. This is overkill. This is melodrama.

Evaluating his gaze behavior: When right-hand dominant individuals (as is Trump) look up to their left, a very large percentage of the time (>95% in those who have been evaluated ["normed" or normalized] for their baseline behavior), they are visually recalling an event from the past which they witnessed. This indicates, with high probability, that President Trump did indeed ask James Comey for his personal loyalty.

Note also, later in this segment, when Ms. Pirro asked the President about tape recordings, Trump looked to up and to HIS Right (0:39). When a right-hand dominant person looks up to his right, he is visually constructing an event in his mind. Why isn't Trump looking up to his left then? (Why is he not simply visually recalling the event?). He has to visually construct the event for one of two reasons:

• It did not occur - ergo he's lying

          or

• It did occur, BUT he was not there to see it 

With either scenario, he did not witness the alleged event, thus he's re-creating a visual "memory" of it. Since Trump was there with Comey, he would not have to construct a memory (If it was a true memory, he would simply have to recall it). Thus we are left with the conclusion that, with a very high probability, Donald Trump did not tape record (audio record) James Comey as he has suggested in his recent tweet.

President Trump also displayed multiple paralanguage behaviors which are noteworthy. Here are two particularly glaring examples:

• During 0:14, the President stutters saying, "I don't think it's approp, inappropriate."
• When Ms. Pirro asks him a question regarding him allegedly asking for James Comey's loyalty, Donald Trump responds with statements about loyalty to the country. 

Summary:

Based on President Trump's nonverbal and paralanguage behavior during this interview segment, we can say with a high degree of confidence:

• Donald Trump did indeed ask James Comey for his personal loyalty
• The President did not record this conversation with then Director Comey. He is bluffing.

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See also:

Body Language Analysis No. 3397: Mr. Lavrov Goes To Washington - “Was he fired? You’re kidding!” - Sergey Lavrov, Rex Tillerson, and James Comey

Body Language Analysis No. 3395: Donald Trump and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in the Oval Office

Body Language Analysis No. 3933: Sally Yates Testimony before Senate Judiciary Committee

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3930: Emmanuel Macron, Hacking, and Anger

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3923: John Boyega, Orlando Bloom, Swagger, and Alpha-Beta Balance

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3873: Brie Larson's Eyes, The Bachelor, and the Edge of Consciousness

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3843: 84 Lumber Super Bowl Ad - "The Entire Journey"

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3798: Elle Fanning, Channing Tatum and Dialing Up the Alpha

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3814: Claire Foy's recounting of Meeting Kate Winslet

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Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3747: Jake Gyllenhaal, Dark Chocolate, Body Language and Emotional Intelligence (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

Jake Gyllenhaal was recently a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live promoting his recent film, Nocturnal Animals.

When Kimmel asked what was his favorite Halloween candy, notice that Gyllenhaal looks up to his left while simultaneously retracting his lower lip (more prominently on his right side).

When right-hand dominant people (as is Gyllenhaal) look up to their left, the vast majority of the time they are in the act of visually recalling a person, a thing, an event, etc. Lower lip retraction (depending on the other nonverbal signals with which it is clustered [and more typically unilaterally as we see here]) is indicative of sincere contemplation. When these two nonverbal signals are coexisting - we can very accurately interpret Jake Gyllenhaal sincerely recalling his preference of a "Milky Way Dark" Chocolate bar.

See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3746: Alicia Keys, Questlove, Krispy Kremes and Connecting the Dots - Body Language and Emotional Intelligence

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3744: Donald Trump - "Stay on Point", Hats, Eye Contact and Trust 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3742: Evan McMullin, Donald Trump and Winning Utah

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3736: Newt Gingrich and Megyn Kelly re: Donald Trump

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3724: The 2nd Presidential Debate - Donald Trump v. Hillary Clinton - Emotional Intelligence and a Profoundly Telling Body Language Signal

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3710: Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte Compares Himself With Hitler

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3223: Jordan Spieth, the U.S. Open, Annie Verret, Kissing and Body Language 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3403: "Johnnie Walker - Dear Brother" Commercial



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Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3536: Prince Explains His Name Change in 1999 Interview - Body Language (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

The video above is an excerpt from a 1999 interview of Prince by Larry King. Prince (whose birth name was Prince Rogers Nelson) changed his name legal name in 1992 to a that of a symbol:

Beginning at 0:27, their dialog continues ...

Larry King: "Why then did you choose, 'The Artist Formerly Known As'?"

Prince: "Well, I didn't choose that, that was chosen."

King: "They chose it for you?"

Prince: "Yeah, pretty much."






What follows is a partial nonverbal analysis.

From 0:31.8 to 0:35, Prince partially covers his mouth with a (mostly) closed fist. Initially he also displays a partially suppressed mouth smile.









At first he also looks briefly up and to his left (very common but not universal when right hand dominant people are recalling something that is primarily visual).

We then see a full sincere smile (Duchenne Smile) with the additional component of blushing.












Taken in toto, this nonverbal cluster is highly consistent with embarrassment and a hesitancy for Prince to fully disclose all he is thinking-feeling.


Thank you Prince. Rest in Peace.


See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3535: Prince, Sexual Signals and Body Language

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3473: Adele's Tongue and Ellen DeGeneres

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3514: Casting Rey - The Force Awakens Bonus Features - Daisy Ridley's Body Language

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3501: Salah Abdeslam of Paris Attacks is Captured - Body Language Traits Shared by Terrorists

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3464: Of Katie Holmes, Super Bowls, Smiles and Anxiety

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3441: Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Interview regarding Flint's Water Crisis - Is He Being Honest and Sincere? 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3377: Holly Holm's post-fight interview after defeating Ronda Rousey

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3417: Freshman Debate Mistakes and Faux Pas Abound

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Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3400: Amy Poehler, Jimmy Fallon, Visual Recall and "Truth or Truth" - Body Language (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

It's both entertaining and highly instructive to watch actors when studying body language. Why? Because it demonstrates that nonverbal behavior is so deeply ingrained, even professional actors/entertainers cannot suppress their real thought-feelings for long (and are typically no better than average at lying when they're "out of character")

In the video above, beginning at 2:55, Amy Poehler says, "... I'd like you to tell the truth. Truth or truth?"

Jimmy Fallon: "Well okay, truth."

Poehler: "What's in your pocket right now?"

Fallon then makes a suppressed smile, tilts his head slightly, begins to look up to his left, blinks (bilaterally) and then a looks up to his left for about 1.1 seconds (during 3:07 - 3:08) and then he blinks with both eyes once again during the realignment of his gaze back toward Poehler.

"A CD case of Bon Jovi's 2005 album, 'Have a nice day' - but inside is Green Day's 'Dookie' CD."

He then pulls the CD out his pocket revealing he had in fact, told the truth. 

If this had been a high level vetting, a deposition, Voir dire, negotiation, interview, etc., Ms. Poehler would do well to know that with the large majority of those who are right-hand dominant (as is Fallon), eyes that suddenly look up to their left during the mental process of visually recalling a person, event, object, etc.

If this had been a high-stakes person-to-person communication scenario, Poehler would have done well to note the timing and context of her question in relationship to this brief but telling momentary eye movement. While this behavior is not seen 100% of the time during visual recall, if a person is "normed" for this nonverbal, it's predictive value rises significantly.

See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3399: Donald Trump, a Bald Eagle and Body Language

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3229: Amy Poehler, Seth Meyers and a SNL Reunion - REALLY!?! - a Body Language Trick of Comedians

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3334: Kevin McCarthy, Judy McCarthy and the Representative's Decision to Withdraw from Pursuing the Position as Speaker of the House - Body Language 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3272: Donald Trump, Megyn Kelly, Deception and Misogyny 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2745: Vladimir Putin Deception regarding Crimea

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3358: Hillary Clinton on Stephen Colbert - We Let the Banks Fail Next Time - Body Language 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3351: A Body Language Signal of Sincere Affection


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Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2647: Vladimir Putin regarding Edward Snowden, What Does the Russian Leader Think? (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

Two days ago Vladimir Putin gave his annual press conference. This year's marathon session lasted about four hours. While the Russian President covered many topics - a small portion dealing with Edward Snowden is discussed here. Below is a partial body language analysis.

The words highlighted in red and purple are coincident with his nonverbal displays as they are timed with the interpreter's words, which are of course are slightly delayed from Mr. Putin's.

(mild) fear at 1:01 (mouth and neck)
 
"... We act under the assumption that in Russia, he will not continue any anti-American propaganda ...."

Putin fears that some of Snowden's future NSA disclosures will make trouble for him and Russia.





Below Vladimir looks first rapidly up to his left (1:22), then straight left (1:23) during the following translator's sentence:

"... In operational terms, we have never worked [up to his left, see first image immediately below] with him [straight to his left, see second image below] and we are not doing this now ..."

1:22

Although not 100% reliable, once a person has been normed for this gaze-directional patterns, a high percentage of right-handed people (Putin is right hand dominant), look up to their left when they are visually recalling a memory.

Image at 1:23

A gaze directional straight to the left (with no significant up or down component) is highly consistent with auditory recall in most right-handed people.








The previous two images, in context with his words, strongly suggests that either Putin himself has met with and is recalling conversations with Edward Snowden - or Vladimir is recalling watching/listening to videos of others interviewing him.

Contempt at 1:26 (Microexpression)

"... We are not asking him any questions about what and how was done in relation to Russia ..."

Mr. Putin clearly feels contempt for those that imply Russia is interrogating Edward Snowden. 

 1:47- 1:48 Regret Display

"... He ah, decided to live in our country due to certain circumstances ...a lot has "

This strongly implies that Mr. Putin feels that giving Snowden amnesty was more trouble than benefit. He regrets letting him into Russia.

1:49 The Puffer Fish

"... A lot has been already done about this ..."

The puffer fish nonverbal display is strongly consistent with anxiety and is more correlative with a past event - although it can be seen with one anticipated in the near future.

This body language tends to have a calming effect as it lowers the heart rate, blood pressure and respiration.

A "Behind the Ear Scratch" (on the mastoid process) as Mr. Putin's interpreter say's "... But it is now up to him to determine his future. We're not going to help him or prevent him, we're just provided him the shelter   ..." shows us Vladimir's significantly heightened anxiety regarding Russia's harboring of Edward Snowden.

 1:52 - 1:56




See also:

Body Language Secret # 53: Charlie Rangel & The Puffer Fish

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2621: Matt Smith (11th Incarnation of 'Dr. Who'), Anxiety and American Psycho

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2519:  Vladimir Putin Speaks Syria,  Chemical Weapons and Disarmament -  Body Language just after his New York Times Op-Ed

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2511:  Barack Obama & Vladimir Putin  Handshake at 2013 G20 Meeting

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2440:  Vladimir Putin Dials Up His Alpha ... Foot Position, Projecting Leadership,  Confidence & Body Language 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2586: Harrison Ford in "Ender's Game" - Microexpression and Macroexpression of Regret - Harrison's Brand and the Stanislavski Method

Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2312:  Bruce Willis' Body Language -  Contempt vs. Suppressed Smile vs.  Pseudo Smile vs. Sincere Smile 

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Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2201: Jack Taylor's 138 Points for NCAA Record - Body Language of Visual Recall and the Rationalization Rapport Empathy Expression

Jack Taylor of Grinnell College played a basketball game for the ages earlier this week. On Tuesday 20 November 2012, he set a NCAA record of 138 points. During this interview he demonstrates a multitude of the classic nonverbal display of visual recall - looking up to the left. Many times when recalling his monumental performance his eyes look up to his left. This very quick eye movement is an epiphenomenon of processing visual memory. And although not completely reliable, when using visual memory, looking up to one's left is a body language signal seen in the vast majority (95+%) of right-handers  (those with left-handed dominance look up to their right during visual recall and ambidextrous individuals could be either). Care must be taken to "norm" this nonverbal pattern before making a judgment - lest a major body language misdiagnosis be made.

Another great nonverbal display exampled in this video is seen at the 0:28 mark. Although the video quality is of inferior quality, a clear microexpression of the "Rationalization Rapport Empathy Expression" (R2E2) is seen concomitant with the Taylor's verbal "... confidence ...". Some will confuse the R2E2 nonverbal with that of disgust - it's a very different emotion however. In an attempt to build rapport, empathy and co-rationalization (both to oneself and to those be spoke to) it is seen very commonly in the settings of negotiation, sales as well as romance. Characteristically both the rate and pitch of the spoken word(s) increase at the moment this classic body language is displayed.

See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 1829: Dara Torres Interview with Piers Morgan - Embarrassment,  Visual Recall, Sexual Anticipation Lip Biting &  Sincerity Quotients

Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2193: Keira Knightley interview re: "Anna Karenina" - Body Language of "R2E2" Facial Expression

Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 705: R2E2,  Pseudo-Smiles and Bonding Beguiles

Negotiation Nonverbal Communication Secret # 1143: Santorum Video Analysis R2E2 and other Tells

Nonverbal Communication Analysis #2097: Mitt Romney's "No one's ever asked to see my birth certificate" defense - Body Language of Rationalization, Rapport and Empathy

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Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2038: Walmart Employee Fired - Signals of Visual Recall

This video is an interesting example of a body language signal of visual recall. Janice Sullivan was a greeter at St. Petersburg, Florida Walmart for over 22 years. Last "Black Friday" when a customer pushed her out of the way, Ms. Sullivan claims she grabbed the customer to prevent herself from falling. Based on her nonverbals, was she telling the truth?

Yes.

Walmart should re-hire this honest employee.

At the 1:09 mark we see Ms. Sullivan quickly looked up to HER left when recalling the specifics. In about 95% of the time, when a right-handed person looks up to her left, she is visually recalling an event which she witnessed. If Janice were lying, she would have looked up to HER right, since this is the quadrant that corresponds to visually constructing an event that wasn't witnessed by her directly. Even if it were a verifiable event, if it wasn't witnessed by her directly, she would have to "construct" the event in her mind's eye. 

Based on these observations, Ms. Sullivan is telling the truth. If you were picking a jury, you'd want to choose her. The former Walmart employee has high honesty and sincerity quotients.

See also:

Analysis # 1712: Negative Nonverbals and The Recency Effect - President Obama's Campaign Ad "Go"

Analysis # 1829: Dara Torres Interview with Piers Morgan - Embarrassment, Visual Recall, Sexual Anticipation Lip Biting & Sincerity Quotients 

Analysis # 1696: George Zimmerman's Testimony - Fear, Incredulity, Regret & Contempt

Analysis # 1905: Ann Curry's Smile and Sincerity Quotient 

Analysis # 1516: Ozzie Guillen Apology, his "Sincerity Quotient" & Fidel Castro 

Analysis # 922: Gabrielle Giffords' and Barack Obama's Hug

Analysis # 1499: Bill Clinton's Empathy for Eric Fehrnstrom and Mitt Romney ... What's your Sincerity Quotient?

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Negotiation Body Language Secret # 531: Sarkozy's Mouth Tells Us What He's Feeling

The following photos of French President Nicolas Sarkozy are relatively similar with respect to his mouth appearance - to the unobservant. But it is very important not to "lump" nonverbals together. I want to take this opportunity "thin slice" and contrast these expressions and their underlying emotions.

In this first image of Sarkozy we see deliberate and theatrical doubt displayed. When this extreme mouth configuration is shown, especially with the unilateral eyebrow and forehead contracture (as Sarkozy is doing on HIS right) there conscious and deliberate doubt present. Politicians often use this extreme lower lip "pout" and the "skeptical eyebrow" to telegraph their (often feigned) disbelief. It's melodramatic - but it's the nature of the political beast.

In this second photo of President Sarkozy, we see an "Inward Lip Roll" - in which the lips are being "gently bitten" (compressed) by the teeth. This is highly consistent with significant anxiety. Depending on the other nonverbals it is clustered with, the ILR can also be a signal of attempting to control and/or suppress other negative emotions - such as anger, fear, etc. 

In this third image of the French President, he shows us what some refer to as the "Miserable Smile" (Ekman).  Incredibly, even though this is an "upside down smile" - in the moment this body language is displayed, the person will believe they're making a slight smile. This is a fantastic example of just how unaware we all are of our emotional displays - particularly in the midst of negative emotions. In this variation of the inward lip roll, the lips stay in front of the teeth (rather than "gently bitten" by them as shown in the second image). His gaze is up and to his left, indicating he is probably visually recalling an event. This Body Language cluster strongly indicates Nicholas is experiencing the emotion of regret.

In this forth photo, we see a mouth expression consistent more with anger. The lips are visible (unlike the the second and third examples) but are stretched very thin in a classic (but misinterpreted by most) anger expression. The partially closed eyelids in this cluster-context are highly consistent with contempt-arrogance. President Sarkozy is experiencing anger-contempt in this moment.

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