Summary: Presidents use the power of speech to persuade, console, encourage and inspire. On a “Bully Pulpit” Edition of Truth, Politics and Power, Host Neal Conan speaks with linguist John McWhorter about the distinctive cadences of President Barack Obama plus extended conversations with former presidential speechwriters Peter Robinson and Paul Glastris on the purpose and meaning of the rhetoric of the presidents they wrote for - Reagan and Clinton - and President Trump’s prolific use of twitter to send messages that are both often petty and untrue.
