John Dunbar Rhetorical Analysis

Trump’s Meeting with the Survivors of Stoneman Douglas

President Donald Trump met with the survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting that killed 17 on February 21st. This meeting, taking place just one week after the tragedy, was held to discuss the issue and to see what steps could be taken to avoid another shooting. During the meeting, Trump conducted a poll on whether or not teachers should be armed. President Trump was also seen with a card numbered 1-5, which seemed to have questions and/or statements he wanted to give. The fifth on the list, and perhaps the most necessary one - “I hear you”.

The authors, Jenna Johnson and John Wagner, seem to sympathize with the students. They include details like how a male student “openly

We cannot have our children die. This is just heartbreaking. Please.” Things like this and many other aspects of the article can invoke an emotional response for the reader - whether that is anger or sadness. There are more parts of the article that are emotionally charged, such as this quote from Trump: “It’s very difficult, it’s very complex, but we’re going to find the solution...there are many different ideas. Some, I guess, are good. Some aren’t good. Some are very stringent...and a lot of people think they work, and some are less so.” This quote could inspire anger due to the dismissive or vague tone that Trump takes on while speaking to the victims. The authors likely included these parts of the article to show the true impact the shooting had on the victims - obviously large and heartbreaking. The inclusion of the Trump quote, however, seems to be the nail in the coffin. It was the last part of the article, and by the tone of the entirety of the piece seems to establish Trump as weak in the face of tragedy and frankly unequipped to face victims of something he supports -

They do this by including the fact that Trump stated that many pilots are armed - which is not entirely true. The quote is followed by: “- a questionable assertion -”. Those words are hyperlinked to another Washington Post article that delves deeper and finds that while guns are present on a few planes, they are not meant to leave the cockpit and are certainly not permitted for use in the passenger area of the plane. These weapons are also not required. The purpose of these weapons on the aircrafts is to prevent potential hijackings. The inclusion of these details show that President Trump isn’t entirely correct in saying that the skies are safer because of pilots being armed, which creates a credibility gap. Trump also said schools sans guns makes “maniacs” want to attack, which is strange because during his campaign he stated that he didn’t want guns in classrooms. These details and more make the President seem like he is not as credible as he should be, especially being in the position he is. Not only could it make the reader disturbed, but frustrated that the President looks ignorant or just