Joe Biden made one last attempt to look ‘strong and fit enough to lead’ after Kamala Harris put on a ‘tearful, emotional display’ as the top Democrats admitted defeat in the 2024 election, a body language expert says.
The president, 81, and vice president, 60, issued starkly different speeches to acknowledge Donald Trump‘s thumping victory, and the contrast ran far deeper than their messages.
Judi James, a renowned body language expert, told DailyMail.com that Biden’s mannerisms during Thursday morning from the White House ‘suggested a mature, calm authority.’
Many observers also noted Biden’s grin during the historic address, which James said exemplified a ‘relaxed and upbeat response’ as a ‘gesture of defiance from the man who clearly still wants to prove he was fit for office.’
However Kamala Harris, on the other hand, had a ‘drawn facial expression’ as she faced the music, and despite offering a positive rhetorical spin on her loss, ‘the way her voice cracked as she spoke suggested tearful emotional displays’, James said.
Joe Biden made one last attempt to look ‘strong and fit enough to lead’ as he addressed Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election, a body language expert said
Kamala Harris’ concession speech the day before Biden’s was a contrast of an effort to ‘rev up’ her crowd despite a ‘drawn facial expression’ throughout
Harris avoided countering Donald Trump’s victory speech on election night and waited until Wednesday to deliver her concession.
Despite the crushing loss, James said Harris’ energetic body language showed an effort to ‘rev up her crowd’, but her ‘drawn facial expression’ gave her true feelings away.
Harris’ speech also left much to be desired, as James said it mainly consisted of ‘shouting cliches’ and ‘word salad with emphatic gesticulation to give it authority and gravitas.’
In contrast, Biden’s body language during his speech addressing Trump’s win was far more confident, controlled and grandfatherly, James said in her analysis.
‘His delivery approach was gentle, paternal and wise,’ she said. ‘Biden’s jogging entrance was a visual comment on what he might still see as his ability to be strong and fit enough to lead.
‘It was a gesture of defiance.’
Biden’s body language during his speech addressing Trump’s win was far more confident, controlled and grandfatherly than Harris’ remarks, James said in her analysis
Harris’ speech also left much to be desired, as James said it mainly consisted of ‘shouting cliches’ and ‘word salad with emphatic gesticulation to give it authority and gravitas’
‘Where Kamala Harris seemed to want to rev up her crowd, grinning and yelling ‘Good afternoon!’ on a loop, Biden took the more mature role, throwing calming gestures by putting his hands up to stop the applause and take control of the moment,’ James continued.
‘His eyes squinted and he raised his hands as he focused on words like ‘Peaceful’ ‘Orderly’ and ‘Acceptance’, in contrast to Harris’s repeat use of the word ‘Fight.”
While some said Biden’s large smile during his speech may have showed a quiet satisfaction at Harris’ loss because of the way he was forced aside, James said his body language told a different story.
‘His overall tone was one of calm acceptance rather than showing any resentment or bitterness,’ she told DailyMail.com.
‘It was his little jogging steps on his arrival that looked choreographed to signal ‘I’ve still got it’. It would have been a subtle hint rather than a declaration that things might have been different if he’d been in office.
‘After being pushed out of office it would have been easy for him to feel a sense of vindication in Harris’s defeat but there was no crowing or asides here to imply that, just a relaxed and upbeat response to the electoral defeat and some kind words for Kamala.’