John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 10/04/2026I like Carter, but as someone who's studied a lot of speeches, it's not a great speech. The moral crisis in the first half gets "resolved" in the second by a policy laundry list--the parts don't fit. Honesty is excellent but it's not enough 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 10/04/2026Brooks on Fannie Lou Hamer, Browne on Angelina Grimke and also Edmund Burke come immediately to mind. 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 07/04/2026In which I join the growing debate initiated by @juliaazari.bsky.social and others about whether Congress should try once again to impeach Donald Trump. oratoricalanimal.substack.com/p/impeachmen...oratoricalanimal.substack.comImpeachment Again?I knock on wood as I write this but it seems likely the Democrats will gain control of the House of Representatives this November and may take the Senate, too. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 03/03/2026Some thoughts on Trump's failure to justify this war and the continuing relevance of traditional presidential rhetoric. oratoricalanimal.substack.com/p/presidenti...oratoricalanimal.substack.comPresidential War Rhetoric OrWhy the traditional presidential genres still matter 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 26/01/2026It plays a surprisingly large role in the recent new bio of Charles Sumner. He did a big long speech about it on the Senate floor and thought it justified the civil rights act. I’ve become curious about it as a result of that. 120
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 26/01/2026I wrote about Mark Carney's excellent speech last week. It's a great example of a speaker trying to create a new language for a new world and I talk about how he does so. oratoricalanimal.substack.com/p/prime-mini...oratoricalanimal.substack.comPrime Minister Mark Carney's Rhetorical RuptureStatus and Disclosure in Public Deliberation 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 22/01/2026And the two prospects will turn into All Stars, they'll turn a young guy into a superhero to replace him, and still win the division. Devil magic Brewers. Says disgruntled Cubs fan. 001
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 16/01/2026A quick and dirty critique of @governorwalz.mn.gov speech yesterday. Spoiler alert: He uses language to make order of disorder. substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comGovernor Tim Walz speaks to MinnesotaAccumulation, Metaphor, Structure, and Agency make order of chaos 000
Reposted by John MurphyAna Marie Cox @anamariecox.com · 08/01/2026If you can stomach it, this is an excellent analysis of video available of the murder of Renee Good. It is "at odds" with the Trump version! Extremely "at odds," you might say, "disproves" or "undermines," or "shows they are lying." www.nytimes.com/video/us/100...nytimes.comVideo: Videos Contradict Trump Administration Account of ICE Shooting in MinneapolisAn analysis of footage from three camera angles show that the vehicle appears to be turning away from a federal officer as he opened fire. 212345
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 26/12/2025It’s a classic. One of the best histories I’ve ever read. 110
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 02/11/2025My best birthday present ever happened on a Wednesday in Cleveland m.youtube.com/watch?v=HOp8...m.youtube.comCubs win World Series with Game 7 winYouTube video by MLB 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 24/09/2025More critiques of Trump's rhetoric! I'm looking at his UN speech and, in particular, his public diplomacy toward India. substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comDonald Trump Insults the WorldRecognition, Rhetoric, and India 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 27/08/2025"Appeasement" feels like it's in the air tonight, as it were, and so I thought a brief rhetorical history of appeasement, bullies, Hitler, Trump, and more might be useful. substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comMunich on the Charles and the Potomac, and the Eagle...A brief rhetorical history and appreciation of appeasement 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 12/08/2025In which I think about Trump, Nixon, and his little dog Checkers, or How did we get to Resentment Politics? substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comNixon, Checkers, and TrumpThe Renewal of the Republican Party, 1952 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 29/07/2025Fascism is one way to explain Trump but he’s also embraced the Republican, authoritarian agenda that stretches back to Jim Crow. open.substack.com/pub/oratoric...open.substack.comThe Mississippi ModelOr the rhetorical trouble with "fascism." 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/07/2025Some thoughts on the debate about the Texas flood open.substack.com/pub/oratoric...open.substack.comWho's to Blame for the Death Toll in Texas?The problems and powers of causal arguments 020
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 03/06/2025Some thoughts on Daaaa new pope’s early public speeches. I’m encouraged: open.substack.com/pub/oratoric...open.substack.comDAAAAA Pope's Rhetorical StylePreliminary thoughts 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 20/05/2025This week, I critique the argument fallacies filling the Tapper and Thompson book attacking Joe Biden. Spoiler alert: Hasty generalization is bad. open.substack.com/pub/oratoric...open.substack.comJoe Biden, Harvard University, and the Hasty GeneralizationFirst of all, my apologies to all of you for the time between posts. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 21/04/2025I had no idea that Joe's Biden's retirement package include a condo in Trump's head. Livin' large and rent-free forever, it appears. 020
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 09/04/2025Surrendering on tariffs is a nice way to celebrate the 160th anniversary of Appomattox. Trump's side lost there, too. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 03/04/2025Cory Booker's a little tired now because he spent 25 hours speaking on the Senate floor and the 25 hours after that sending me emails. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 02/04/2025I wrote a bit about Cory Booker. With some historical 1957 trivia as well. oratoricalanimal.substack.com/p/quick-thou...oratoricalanimal.substack.comQuick Thoughts on Cory Booker's recordIt’s seldom that professional rhetorical critics can enjoy extensive media coverage of a speaking record. 011
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 17/03/2025On each, Ds are on defense and their approval has dropped to 29% after last week's fiasco. It's difficult to prove a negative, but it's hard to imagine that a fighting Democratic Party standing against cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and unconstitutional firings would have fared worse than this. 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 17/03/2025If you want to measure Chuck Schumer's failure, it's in the disappearance of the budget. Rather than banner headlines about Trump/Musk's attacks on beloved programs, the headlines concern Russian progress in Ukraine, Trump's economic rhetoric, and the deportation of alleged terrorists. 110
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 17/03/2025A rhetorical analysis of #Illini AD Josh Whitman’s congressional testimony substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comMr. Whitman Goes To WashingtonIllini AD Josh Whitman's Congressional Testimony 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/03/2025No need for any more cloture. They’ll stuff every possible horrible thing into a reconciliation and that’s it. The Democratic leader cleared the way. This was the only place to stop them. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/03/2025Schumer and his sniveling colleagues have made it possible for Musk and Trump to claim the firings, the unconstitutional destruction of agencies, etc. is bipartisan. That is the rhetoric they will use. And Schumer, Durbin, etc have undercut any response. Idiots. 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/03/2025Vichy is a good word for them. If Durbin isn’t quitting, I hope Pritzker is lining up a primary opponent as we speak 120
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/03/2025Nobody at Durbin’s offices are answering the phone. I emailed. Pritzker has issued a statement and I very much hope our Gov puts the screws to Durbin. If he’s a yes, he can’t be considering running again. It’ll destroy him. 110
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 14/03/2025Time for @amyklobuchar.com to challenge Schumer for Minority Leader 020
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 12/03/2025William Barr used almost exactly the same words to talk about voter fraud in mail ballots before the 2020 election. 021
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 06/03/2025That's a Paul Wellstone line. And, yes, I miss Paul Wellstone all of the time. It was a terrible thing to lose him. 010
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 06/03/2025Some thoughts on Trump, the state of the union, presidential genres, and democracy. They are not happy thoughts. #teamrhetoric substack.com/home/post/p-...substack.comDonald Trump's Personalized Presidential PersuasionI’m still working through my thoughts on President Trump’s State of the Union, so please bear with me. 010
Reposted by John Murphy🎃Darin S Pumpkins🎃 @darinself.com · 03/03/2025Tracking the performance of the S&P 500 through 100 days of an administration because I don't want to grade. 11253991874
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 25/02/2025They issued a statement. Dictators everywhere tremble in their bunkers. Because. A statement. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 25/02/2025Governor JB Pritzker (D-IL) gave a great State of the State address that received wide applause and boosted his presidential prospects. Here, I try to explain why, beyond his provocative denunciation of home-grown Nazis. substack.com/home/post/p-...substack.comGovernor JB Pritzker's State of the Union, er, StateSpoiler alert: We're good in Illinois but you people in DC.... 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 23/02/2025So, Musk, who's srsly not in charge of anything, so don't ask him for financial records, has demanded federal employees report to him. Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation. I hope some CIA operative responds with the classic movie line, "I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you." 052
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 18/02/2025A better Patrick Wisdom. Much as I loved Wisdom as a Cub and person. 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 18/02/2025In which I try to show just how JD Vance’s speech in Europe gaslights the world. substack.com/inbox/post/1...substack.comInbox | Substack 000
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 15/02/2025That was a huge price to pay for one year of Tucker and a first rd playoff exit. Of course, the latter is their yearly goal now 110
John Murphy @cubsmurphy.bsky.social · 13/02/2025The @nytimes.com seems finally to have figured out that this Donald Trump fellow just might be bad for the country. How COULD we have known? It’s a mystery.media.tenor.coma man in a bathtub with the words welcome to the party pal on the bottomALT: a man in a bathtub with the words welcome to the party pal on the bottom 151