Trump's 'Word Fest' Leaves Stenographers Saying "Limits on Ears and Fingers"

by Choi Seungwoo

Published 01 Feb.2025 15:00(KST)

More Than Twice as Many Words as His First Term
"Engages the Public" vs. "People Will Tune Out" ? Divided Opinions

Donald Trump, the U.S. president known for being talkative even under normal circumstances, has been speaking even more since his inauguration. As a result, White House stenographers who record his words are reportedly overwhelmed with work.

According to a recent report by the Associated Press (AP), President Trump spoke 81,235 words in front of cameras during his first week in office, totaling 7 hours and 44 minutes. This is longer than the combined dialogue of the three-part Star Wars movie series and exceeds the total words of William Shakespeare’s major works Macbeth, Hamlet, and Richard III combined. This contrasts sharply with former President Joe Biden, who spoke about 24,259 words over 2 hours and 36 minutes during his first week in office in 2021.

On January 20, the day of his inauguration, President Trump spoke 22,000 words, and on January 24, he added another 17,000 words at disaster sites in North Carolina and California.

Donald Trump, President of the United States Yonhap News

During his first week in office in 2017, his first term, Trump spoke 33,571 words over 3 hours and 41 minutes in front of cameras. This year, he is speaking more than twice that amount.

In fact, during an interview with Fox News on January 22, Trump expressed pride in his oratory skills, which have become more prominent in his second term, saying, “Biden has never held press conferences like I have.”

Moreover, a hallmark of the “Trump style” is his spontaneous and context-free outpouring of thoughts on various topics. On January 29, at the signing ceremony for the illegal immigrant detention bill, he started by boasting about his achievements and then continuously spoke about condemning the Palestinian militant group Hamas, efforts to freeze federal spending, government workforce reductions, immigrant violence, and the Guantanamo detention plan for illegal immigrants.

The AP analyzed, “President Trump understands better than most politicians that drawing people’s attention and engagement is one way to maintain power.”

However, some critics argue that “speaking a lot does not necessarily increase clarity of information,” viewing Trump’s rhetoric negatively. Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, said, “Being accessible and being transparent are different things,” adding, “Many people will just tune out after listening to him.”

Meanwhile, due to the large volume of Trump’s speech, White House stenographers who record his words are reportedly struggling. The AP noted, “Considering that former President Biden was relatively quiet, even the most dedicated stenographers are reaching their limits in terms of ears and fingers.”