1/ Carter Page has been a focus of the Special Counsel Investigation being led by Robert Mueller. It's been alleged that Page acted as a conduit between Donald Trump and/or Trump's associates and Russian officials during the 2016 Presidential Election.
2/ Yesterday, the FBI released a version of a FISA warrant application regarding Carter Page. The document, although highly redacted, states, ...
3/ "The FBI believes that Page has been collaborating and conspiring with the Russian government," in addition to "there is probable cause that such activities involve or are about to involve violations of the criminal statutes of the United States."
4/ Carter Page was a guest this morning on CNN's State of The Union. Jake Tapper pressed him several times regarding any current and past relationships with the Russian government.
5/ What follows is a partial nonverbal analysis focusing on one of Page's prevalent nonverbal tendencies: Why is Carter Page so often in a state of near-constant smiling?
6/ Some people have a strong tendency toward smiling - essentially a default reaction - when they're deceiving, attempting to deceive - or being confronted with accusations of wrongdoings.
7/ This behavior is usually a longstanding, conditioned response. It's a tic-like phenomenon - which typically begins in childhood.
8/ Early in life, these "Default Smilers" learn that they're not very skilled at suppressing their smiles - particularly when it's out-of-context - such as in the midst of deceiving.
9/ Duping Delight is a related phenomenon whereby a person takes pleasure - true joy-happiness - in the act of fooling another person or believing they have successfully pulled off a lie.
10/ Their smiling - which is often subtle and evanescent - when displayed out-of-context, gives them away.
11/ Since Default Smilers have long-since learned they can't hide their guilt by suppressing their smile, instead, their psyches take the opposite tactic - they smile continually so that others will not be able to detect them breaking character.
12/ This is a bit like using excessive frosting trying to cover up a burnt cake.
13/ Default Smiling often begins early in life as Duping Delight - but it then evolves into something else: an over-compensatory behavior in an effort to hide deception in plain sight.
14/ Carter Page displays the additional signals of:
• Repeated/near constant blushing
• Prolonged blinking
• Hard swallows (e.g., during 6:12)
• Unstable vocal quality/Voice shakiness
...
15/
• Not answering Tapper's questions
• Hyperbolic denials
• Stuttering/stammering
• Hedging word choices
...
16/ ... and
• Jaw confessionals (e.g., during 4:55 [shown here] and 6:11).
17/ SUMMARY: Carter Page's nonverbal behavior during this interview indicates, that with high probability, he is lying - and that he has, in some significant capacity, collaborated with Russian government officials.
continued ...
18/ Page exhibits multiple deception tells. Intriguingly, his nonverbal state of near-constant smiling (default smiling) is a long-standing mechanism to compensate for his poor poker face (e.g., "If I'm always smiling, they won't be able to tell when I'm lying").
END
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2/ Donald Trump delivered a campaign speech earlier today in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He repeatedly made the expression show in this accompanying still image. Note his central forehead is contracted and elevated while simultaneously displaying a (feigned) mouth smile.
3/ We all make an expression similar to this one *once-in-a-while* when we're feeling:
• Smug Incredulity
• Arrogance
• Contempt
(although all of these thought-emotions have other facial expressions with which they're associated)
1/ Yesterday, after the closest Senate vote in 137 years, Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed as an Associate Justice on the United States Supreme Court. Ashley Kavanaugh's body language during her husband's swearing-in ceremony is worthy of scrutiny.
2/ Note in the above image, as retired Justice Anthony Kennedy administers the Judicial Oath to Brett Kavanaugh, Ashley Kavanaugh is standing with her left leg crossed in front of her right leg. This nonverbal display indicates a lowered confidence level & a beta emotional tone.
1/ There are many nonverbal signs indicating relative levels of confidence. During last week's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford exhibited contrasting examples of one such signal.
2/ When a person raises their right hand to be sworn-in before testifying, if their fingers and/or thumb are spread apart - it signals low levels of confidence.
1/ The following is my second analysis of a portion of Brett Kavanaugh's testimony during his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on 27 September 2018.
2/ JOHN KENNEDY (beginning at 3:45:39): "I’m — I’m sorry, judge, for what you and your family have been through. And I’m sorry - for what Dr. Ford and her family have been through. It could have been avoided [long pause] Do you believe in God?"
1/ In case you hadn't heard, on Wednesday 27 September 2018, both Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
2/ This hearing could supply a year's worth of nonverbal teaching examples and it would close to impossible to analyze the entire event in one session. Thus, what follows is the first of several analyses of this historic exchange.