Harris’ ‘Ice Princess’ Posture, Bush’s Stomach Tap Were Key Expressions at Jimmy Carter’s Funeral: Expert
During the 2024 election cycle, Americans witnessed what appeared to be no love lost between President-elect Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama.
However, with the former President Jimmy Carter The two recent presidents appeared to enjoy each other’s company and largely ignored other dignitaries arriving around them, including Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden.
Susan Constantine, a communications and body language expert, said Harris came off as “what cool can be.”
“‘Ice Princess’ all the way. When she walked she was very robotic. I call it ‘rigidity’ when we see that soldier-like attitude.”
HARRIS, EMHOFF APPEAR TO IGNORE TRUMP, OBAMA WHILE OUTGOING VEEP GRIMACES AT PRESIDENTIAL SEND OFF
Harris deliberately avoided eye contact with Trump, in a show of disdain. The tension in her expression, with pursed lips pressed towards the center, showed that there was “no love lost” between the two 2024 candidates.
“She walked past him on purpose and a step of arrogance and confidence that didn’t sit well with her,” Constantine said. “[It] she tells me that she went in there with a fragile thing on her shoulder.”
Another attendee who seemed more subdued than usual was former first lady Laura Bush.
Constantine said Mrs. Bush had always been known for her outspoken personality, but noted that she did not salute the Trumps or Obamas from the left.
“I think she’s just always been such a beautiful, articulate woman who always has a genuine smile and seems to be very warm. So I’ll give her credit,” Constantine said, adding that she only saw Bush’s glance briefly over her right shoulder to make eye contact – potentially with Al Gore or the Quayles.
However, Constantine said there was one interaction that really stood out: Trump’s cheerful conversation and gesturing with Barack Obama.
TRUMP NAILS OBAMA WHILE CLINTONS, HARRIS IGNORE THE PRESIDENT-ELECT AT CARTER’S WAKE
Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump share a laugh at the Washington National Cathedral. (Fox Business)
“They add rapport. There was no doubt.”
“President Obama would tilt his head to him listening to what Trump had to say. Trump was always in that forward attitude. He was always ready, engaged. And he, President Obama and Trump felt very similar to each other which maybe made the rest [the presidential attendees] feel a little uncomfortable.”
However, there was a moment where Trump seemed to be talking about something Obama seemed to want to hold off on until after the somber event.
Trump appeared to “shrug” Obama, as if asking him “what do you think about this?”
Obama’s furrowed brow and “neutral expression” showed he was listening intently, but the men were having an “intense conversation,” Constantine said.
The New York Post reported that a lip reader suggested the two were discussing “international agreements” that would therefore require such sensitivity.
Vice President Harris reacts when he sees President Obama and Trump talking. (Fox Business)
When asked about Gore appearing to be the first to stand up and greet Trump, along with others, Constantine said that would mean the Tennessean was showing respect and being “a perfect gentleman.”
Trump walked past Quayles without a single member of the other family under President George HW Bush rising, but Gore quickly rose to shake his hand.
The longtime Democrat likely put politics aside when he greeted the Republican president-elect, she said.
George W. Bush circled Obama on the X after the ceremony.
“When you tap someone on the stomach, all your emotions are there. And when you touch someone in that, it’s a personal zone. You have to feel pretty comfortable to do that. You have to feel very comfortable with that relationship to do that,” she said of Bush, who did indeed have a civil relationship with the man who repeatedly criticized him in 2008.
Bush also reached back to playfully slap Vice President Dan Quayle with his bulletin as he took his seat.
It could be a sign that Bush was uncomfortable, or just a less intimate or playful greeting.
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Former Vice President Al Gore rises to greet Donald Trump (Fox Business)
The Clintons and Bidens noticeably arrived without actively greeting the other gathered dignitaries. Hillary Clinton had a “disbelieving” expression on her face that she has shown before, Constantine said.
“If you could focus on Hillary, you’ll see the dimples on either side of her mouth give that incredible expression that she has.
In general, Constantine said, when people go to funerals, they act differently and usually say goodbye to everyone regardless of past differences — and that sentiment could affect the interactions seen Thursday.
Meanwhile, a forensic lip reader – expert Jeremy Freeman – told the New York Post that Trump appeared to tell Obama that the two should find a “quiet place” soon to discuss “an important matter.”
“I withdrew from it. Those are the terms. Can you imagine that?” Trump said at one point, according to Freeman.
Freeman also indicated that Trump appeared to have asked Obama to call him after the memorial service to further discuss the issue or issues.
The moment struck a different tone between the two men, as Trump had previously played down claims that Obama is Muslim, calling him by his full name, which includes the middle name Hussein.
Obama has also attacked Trump over the years, including during the 2024 campaign when he appeared to reference Trump’s private parts in a joke about the size of the crowd while gesturing with his hands inches apart.
He also compared Trump’s failed speeches to the rambling, hours-long diatribes of the late Cuban communist leader Fidel Castro:
“You have two-hour speeches, word salad. It’s like Fidel Castro over and over again,” Obama told a crowd in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in October.
