Analyzing Trump’s Inauguration Ceremony Through Facial Expressions And Body Language

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By Zhao Zhijiang

Under the watchful eyes of many, Donald Trump recently took the oath of office as the 47th President of the United States in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. In his inaugural speech, he proclaimed to the world that America has entered a “golden age”, and that he was saved by God to “make America great again”. The message Trump aimed to convey was simple: America would return to common sense, prioritize domestic affairs, and become great once again. In his speech, Trump also outlined a very detailed to-do list, previewing the series of policies that the new administration would pursue. Compared to his first inaugural address eight years ago, which was filled with anger with wordings like “American carnage”, this speech was more positive and optimistic, filled with hope for the future. Amidst the cheers, Trump 2.0 has truly arrived.

The entire world has already watched this ceremony, and everyone has their own thoughts and feelings. The media, experts, and various individuals are all interpreting and commenting on Trump’s speech, predicting America’s “grand plan”. For them, every word spoken by Trump and his aides could contain important signals that need to be carefully and promptly analyzed. However, a senior researcher at ANBOUND believes that too much focus has been misplaced on what Trump and his associates said. What is more important is to approach it from different angles and information points, such as facial expressions, relationships, and body language, so as to deduce the development trends of the Trump team and the longer-term future.

Trump’s inauguration ceremony was a indeed grand stage showcasing political group portrait. Whether it was American politicians, tech giants, or influential figures like Argentina’s Javier Milei, all were displaying themselves through their expressions, attitudes, and body language. Their facial expressions, postures, gestures, distance, and interactions with others are often overlooked by the outside world, but they provide crucial clues for making predictions and discoveries.

JD Vance’s interaction with Trump is a great example. By carefully observing their interaction, one can see that Trump behaves like a godfather while Vance, wearing a bright red tie, has clearly adapted to this dynamic as the “underling”. After entering the scene, they appeared very close, with only Trump’s youngest son Barron Trump standing nearby. Even after sitting down, they continued to whisper to each other. During this time, even when they were not speaking, Vance could be seen sitting attentively, always ready to respond to Trump. Researchers at ANBOUND believe that these details suggest Trump has not built a typical government team but rather a political team loyal to him. It can be inferred that, given Vance’s proper positioning, their cooperation will likely be smooth over the next four years. This strong partnership will lay a solid foundation for Vance’s future political career. It should be noted that although Vance had previously criticized his “current boss” on social media, he has clearly evolved into an ideal Trumpist. Four or eight years from now, he will be more mature and could potentially inherit Trump’s position, becoming the next Republican president of the United States. Based on their interaction during the inauguration, this prediction of a “President Vance” seems quite logical and plausible.

For China, this is also a major challenge. It means that Trumpism will become long-lasting, likely to be the dominant theme in the U.S. for a long period of time. The opposing voices from the establishment, such as liberalism and progressivism, will weaken over time. This will lead to a new political landscape in the world. Looking ahead, it is expected that conservative politics in Europe will also take the stage, and the global space will become more fragmented. The wave of conservatism will sweep the world, not just the United States. In this situation, China faces both opportunities and challenges. Even though the future may be harsh, it would be wise for China to continue exporting as a channel for economic growth. As long as demand exists and products are competitive, exports will continue. In fact, “exports” are currently the only thing China has that has a real influence internationally. In the global trade game, even though China will face long-term economic populism from the West, it should not fall into the trap of trade extremism.

Back to the inauguration ceremony, aside from the interaction and body language between Vance and Trump, another important figure’s performance is worth noting: the current Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. The Secretary of State is the most important position in the U.S. government, equivalent to a “foreign minister” in other countries, but the U.S. Secretary of State wields greater power, oversees a broader range of responsibilities, and holds a more influential political status. According to the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, if the President vacates the office, the Vice President, Speaker of the House, President pro tempore of the Senate, Secretary of State, and key cabinet members follow in succession. The Secretary of State ranks fourth in this order, underscoring their importance. However, what is odd is that throughout the entire inauguration ceremony, Rubio’s whereabouts were unknown. U.S. media reports and related information confirm that Rubio attended Trump’s inauguration, but at no point during the event was there any visible communication or interaction between Trump and Rubio.

What is the implication of this? Rubio is a person with political ambitions. He comes across as someone who is dissatisfied and has his own independent views. Rubio and Trump also have a history of conflict. In 2016, he criticized Trump and called him a “con artist” who had hijacked the conservative movement. Trump, in turn, mocked Rubio for wearing makeup and called him a “nervous basket case” who perspires too much. Based on this past history and the events at the inauguration, it can be roughly inferred that there may be some issues in the future regarding the cooperation between Rubio and Trump. Unlike Vance, who relies on Trump, Rubio’s political base is in the Senate, and his appointment as Secretary of State was approved with zero opposition votes in the Senate. Therefore, ANBOUND believes that the relationship between Rubio and Trump could face various problems down the line. Rubio and Trump may have disagreements, and it is even possible that Rubio might not complete his term due to such conflicts.

Similar situations have occurred before. In 2018, Trump nominated then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo to replace Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Trump complained that he and Tillerson had differing views on many issues and that their ideologies were completely incompatible. He was dissatisfied with Tillerson’s “establishment” style and felt he had made a wrong choice initially. The two disagreed on major issues such as climate change, the Iran nuclear deal, North Korea, and U.S. Middle East policy. A similar situation could occur with Rubio as well.

When it comes to building his team, Trump is likely to make changes in batches. The individuals chosen this time may have their positions replaced in one or two years. Therefore, it’s uncertain whether Rubio will serve a full four years as Secretary of State.

From the information available, it appears that Rubio and Trump do not share consistent attitudes or views. Rubio clearly has his own ideas and is only maintaining a superficial alignment with Trump for the time being. From China’s perspective, it may be better to avoid direct face-to-face meetings with Rubio. The most important thing is to seek direct talks with higher-level figures, such as Trump himself, so that Rubio’s attitude and position will no longer matter.

Some might say that focusing on body language and facial expressions is making groundless associations. Yet, this is a legitimate method of information analysis; it just manifests in behavioral science. It is not dissimilar to how businesses use behavioral science to understand preferences, actions, and consumption patterns. Marketers do this, as do policy departments. Information analysis sometimes seems a bit mysterious, but that is exactly how it works.

Final analysis conclusion:

The whole world has seen Trump’s inauguration ceremony, but focusing solely on the speech is far from sufficient. On this political stage, everyone has their own performance. By observing facial expressions, postures, gestures, and interactions among people, we can gain insights into the development trends of Trump’s team and make predictions about the more distant future.

  • Zhijiang Zhao is a Research Fellow for Geopolitical Strategy programme at ANBOUND, an independent think tank.

Anbound

Anbound Consulting (Anbound) is an independent Think Tank with the headquarter based in Beijing. Established in 1993, Anbound specializes in public policy research, and enjoys a professional reputation in the areas of strategic forecasting, policy solutions and risk analysis. Anbound's research findings are widely recognized and create a deep interest within public media, academics and experts who are also providing consulting service to the State Council of China.

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