a speech should be like a skirt

Quote Investigator®

Tracing Quotations

Long Enough to Cover the Subject and Short Enough to Create Interest

Winston Churchill? Ronald Knox? Gerald K. Rudulph? C. H. McNider? Richard N. Elliott? Louis Sobol? Frances Langford? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: The famous statesman and orator Winston Churchill was asked about the length of an ideal address, and he supposedly said:

A speech should be like a woman’s skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.

Yet, a similar remark about sermons is often attributed to the theologian Ronald Knox. Would you please explore this topic?

Quote Investigator: This quip is difficult to trace because it has many variants, and the phrasing is highly variable. The earliest strong match located by QI appeared in May 1920 in “The Buffalo Enquirer” of Buffalo, New York. The columnist Gerald K. Rudulph employed quotation marks to signal that the joke was already in circulation. This version used a simile comparing the length of a newspaper column and a woman’s skirt. Emphasis added to excerpts by QI : [1] 1920 May 21, The Buffalo Enquirer, The Port Side Column by Gerald K. Rudulph, Quote Page 1, Column 1, Buffalo, New York. (Newspapers_com)

. . . we will do our best and try to make this column like a woman’s skirt, “short enough to be attractive, but long enough to cover the subject.”

An instance was attributed to Churchill by 1942. He probably used it after it had been coined. Pertinent citations are presented further below. QI has been unable to find substantive evidence that Ronald Knox used the expression.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Statements about fine-tuning the length of speeches have a long history. In 1833 a newspaper in London printed a statement about the pressure to make speeches long versus short: [2] 1833 August 5, The Morning Post, (Short untitled item), Quote Page 3, Column 1, London, England. (Newspapers_com)

A Correspondent reminds us of a very just remark of a shrewd and experienced proprietor of a Newspaper— “I never can make the speeches long enough for the speakers nor short enough for the public.”

The citation above and the next few citations suggest an evolutionary path for the formulation of the gag.

In 1881 a newspaper in Atchison, Kansas printed a remark of praise that was somewhat similar to the saying under examination, but skirts were not mentioned: [3] 1881 February 3, The Atchison Daily Champion, (Short untitled item), Quote Page 2, Column 1, Atchison, Kansas. (Newspapers_com)

The letters from Washington, furnished by Mr. Ward Burlingame, are well written, being short enough to be interesting, and long enough to give all that is of importance . . .

In 1884 a newspaper in Natchez, Mississippi printed a similar contrastive statement: [4] 1884 August 27, Natchez Weekly Democrat, Fashion Fancies: Choice Tidbits for our Lady Readers, Quote Page 1, Column 8, Natchez, Mississippi. (Newspapers_com)

He recalls in this the statesmen and presidents of old, and writes a letter that all will read— short enough to be interesting, but long enough to fully cover all the important questions before the American people in the present presidential campaign.

In 1908 a newspaper in Green Bay, Wisconsin reprinted a precursor joke from the humor magazine “Puck”: [5] 1908 May 18, The Green Bay Gazette, The Ideal Sermon, Quote Page 4, Column 4, Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Newspapers_com)

The New Minister—What is your idea of the proper length of a sermon , Miss Deerlng? The Choir Singer—Why, I think it should be long enough to get people interested and short enough to keep them so. —Puck.

In March 1920 a Kansas newspaper printed a piece titled “New Parisian Knee-Length Skirt” with a New York dateline. The joke here does not mention speeches, sermons, or letters. Yet, this joke about skirts could be combined with one of the citations above to yield the currently circulating quip: [6] 1920 March 14, The Salina Daily Union, New Parisian Knee-Length Skirt, Quote Page 13, Column 2, Salina, Kansas. (Newspapers_com)

NEW YORK.—The newest thing in skirts from Paris is here and created quite a sensation on its first appearance on Broadway. It is described as being “long enough to cover the object and short enough to be interesting.”

In May 1920 the quip emerged in a Buffalo, New York newspaper as noted previously: [7] 1920 May 21, The Buffalo Enquirer, The Port Side Column by Gerald K. Rudulph, Quote Page 1, Column 1, Buffalo, New York. (Newspapers_com)

In June 1920 C. H. McNider, President of the First National Bank of Mason City, Iowa, addressed fellow bankers at a convention and employed an instance of the simile based on the lengths of a talk and a woman’s skirt: [8] 1920, Report of the Twenty-Ninth Annual Convention of the South Dakota Bankers Association, Held at Watertown, South Dakota, June 24th and 25th, 1920, (Address by Mr. C. H. McNider, President of the … Continue reading

I would make this talk as appropriate as a modern woman’s skirt—short enough to be interesting, long enough to cover the subject. (Laughter and applause.)

In July 1920 a New Jersey newspaper printed an instance of the simile based on the lengths of a manuscript and a bathing suit: [9] 1920 July 30, Asbury Park Evening Press, Beach and Boardwalk by R. E. Porter, Quote Page 2, Column 7, Asbury Park, New Jersey. (Newspapers_com)

Gerald tells us that an ideal manuscript is like an up-to-date lady’s bathing suit—short enough to be interesting and long enough to cover the subject.

In October 1920 Indiana Congressman Richard N. Elliott employed an instance based the on lengths of a speech and a woman’s skirt: [10] 1920 October 26, The Daily Republican, Republican Doctrine Spread to All Parts of Rush County, Quote Page 1, Column 1, Rushville, Indiana. (Newspapers_com)

“It is difficult to make a speech in this campaign in such a short space of time,” the congressman said. “A speech should be very much like a woman’s skirt—long enough to cover the subject but short enough to be interesting.”

In 1942 New York columnist Louis Sobol credited Winston Churchill with an instance: [11] 1942 July 10, The Press Democrat, From the Great White Way: New York Broadway Cavalcade by Louis Sobol, Quote Page 12, Column 8, Santa Rosa, California. (Newspapers_com)

Someone once asked Churchill whether he had any rules for speechmaking, inasmuch as he was admittedly one of the greatest living orators. “A speech should be like a lady’s dress,” he replied, “long enough to cover the subject—but short enough to be interesting.”

In 1943 a syndicated gossip column reported that the popular singer Frances Langford heard the quip delivered by Winston Churchill: [12] 1943 August 23, The Indianapolis News, Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood (McNaught Syndicate), Quote Page 14, Column 3, Indianapolis, Indiana. (Newspapers_com)

Speaking of dresses, Frances Langford met Winston Churchill in London and congratulated him on his oratory. “A speech,” said he, “should be like a lady’s dress—colorful enough to catch the attention, long enough to cover the subject and short enough to be interesting.”

In conclusion, QI believes that this jest evolved over time from partially matching statements. The earliest strong match in May 1920 used quotation marks to signal that the creator was anonymous. Future researchers may clarify the provenance by finding earlier strong matches. The 1942 and 1943 citations indicate that Winston Churchill employed the quip, but the late date means he was not the creator.

(Great thanks to Kevin Barkan and Steven Schwartzman whose inquiries led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration. Barkan mentioned the ascription to Winston Churchill. Schwartzman helpfully provided numerous citations beginning in June 1920. Special thanks to researcher Barry Popik for his pioneering research . He located matching citations beginning in October 1920.)

References
↑1, ↑7	1920 May 21, The Buffalo Enquirer, The Port Side Column by Gerald K. Rudulph, Quote Page 1, Column 1, Buffalo, New York. (Newspapers_com)
↑2	1833 August 5, The Morning Post, (Short untitled item), Quote Page 3, Column 1, London, England. (Newspapers_com)
↑3	1881 February 3, The Atchison Daily Champion, (Short untitled item), Quote Page 2, Column 1, Atchison, Kansas. (Newspapers_com)
↑4	1884 August 27, Natchez Weekly Democrat, Fashion Fancies: Choice Tidbits for our Lady Readers, Quote Page 1, Column 8, Natchez, Mississippi. (Newspapers_com)
↑5	1908 May 18, The Green Bay Gazette, The Ideal Sermon, Quote Page 4, Column 4, Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Newspapers_com)
↑6	1920 March 14, The Salina Daily Union, New Parisian Knee-Length Skirt, Quote Page 13, Column 2, Salina, Kansas. (Newspapers_com)
↑8	1920, Report of the Twenty-Ninth Annual Convention of the South Dakota Bankers Association, Held at Watertown, South Dakota, June 24th and 25th, 1920, (Address by Mr. C. H. McNider, President of the First National Bank of Mason City, Iowa), Start Page 108, Quote Page 108, South Dakota Bankers Association.(Google Books Full View)
↑9	1920 July 30, Asbury Park Evening Press, Beach and Boardwalk by R. E. Porter, Quote Page 2, Column 7, Asbury Park, New Jersey. (Newspapers_com)
↑10	1920 October 26, The Daily Republican, Republican Doctrine Spread to All Parts of Rush County, Quote Page 1, Column 1, Rushville, Indiana. (Newspapers_com)
↑11	1942 July 10, The Press Democrat, From the Great White Way: New York Broadway Cavalcade by Louis Sobol, Quote Page 12, Column 8, Santa Rosa, California. (Newspapers_com)
↑12	1943 August 23, The Indianapolis News, Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood (McNaught Syndicate), Quote Page 14, Column 3, Indianapolis, Indiana. (Newspapers_com)

Humour , Quotes for Public Speakers

Quotes for Public Speakers (No. 159) – Unknown

Mannerofspeaking.

February 28, 2013

“A good speech is like a beautiful dress: long enough to cover the subject, but short enough to keep it interesting.”

Unknown; often attributed to winston churchill, photo courtesy of tamara bellis on unsplash, like this article.

Nice quote … we need to find out where this one originated. Context suggests something in the 20th century.

Thanks, John. The quote exists in different forms but I was unable to find a single source. But I don’t think that I’ll look too hard because it would mean that I would have to substitute the photo of Halle for the speaker. 😉 John

Winston Churchill is the source.

Thanks very much. In the quote below, Rich Austin said the same thing. Please see my response to him. Regards, John

Actually, this is quote from Winston Church. “A speech should be like a women’s skirt. Long enough to cover the subject, but short enough to maintain interest.”

Thanks, Rich. I have seen the quote attributed to Churchill, and it is certainly something that he could have said, knowing his clever wit. But when looking, I found so many unattributed variations. For example, this one: “A paragraph should be like a lady’s skirt: long enough to cover the essentials but short enough to keep it interesting.” I’ve also seen it attributed to Mark Twain or Ronald Knox, the latter of whom supposedly said, “A good sermon should be like a woman’s skirt: short enough to arouse interest but long enough to cover the essentials.” Perhaps the compromise would be to say “Frequently attributed to Winston Churchill”. But I have enough pictures of Churchill on the blog already, so I am not changing this one! 😉 Cheers! John

Dear John (and other readers), First of all, I love your blog and visit it almost everyday looking for new updates. 🙂 I’m a Dutch speechwriter and one could always learn more about the art of public speaking. Even more considering the fact public speaking holds higher regard in America than in the Netherlands. I saw your interesting discussion about the origins of the quote. I agree with John that, knowing Churchill’s wit, he is a likely candidate. However, as a (continental) European, I might have another source for this quote: the French king-of-protocol Jacques Gandouin (1920-2003). In 1972, he wrote the “Guide du protocole et des usage” (Guide to protocol and custom) and the “Guide des bonnes manières et du protocole en Europe” (Guide to good manners and protocol in Europe) in 1989. In those books, it reads : “Un discours doit être comme une minijupe, suffisamment long pour couvrir le sujet, mais suffisamment court pour retenir l’attention.” Thank you for reading. Christian

Dear Christian, Thanks very much for the kind words about the blog. And thanks also for the great addition to the discussion of the source of this quote. For those readers who do not speak French, the quote at the end of Christians’s comment can be translated as: “A speech should be like a miniskirt, long enough to cover the subject but short enough to hold [the audience’s] attention.” I had not heard of Gandouin before but will be sure to look him up. And, this helpful information is one more reason not to substitute Halle Berry’s photo with one of Churchill! 😉 Thanks again for the comment. John

Meaningful words, spectacular picture. Well done!

Thank you, David. Agreed on all counts. John

Short enough to arouse interest but long enough to cover the subject

It has been said a variety of ways. I still prefer the one attributed to Churchill, mainly because I can imagine him saying it that way.

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'A good speech is like a miniskirt. Long enough to cover up but short enough to be interesting'

Public-speaking trainer Barbara Moynihan delivers a masterclass in making presentations.

IF YOU’RE WORRIED about speaking at an event, remind yourself that this isn’t your core skill.

For example, if you’re a marketer, you’re brilliant at marketing. You don’t have to be the Steve Jobs of public speaking. You just need to be good enough to get your message across.

Addressing a room full of your peers is a great way to raise your profile, so if you’re invited to speak at a conference or event, you should go for it.

With that in mind, here are some tips to help people in business properly prepare for a speech.

Do your homework

The first thing you should do is find out if the event has a theme. This will help you tailor your content so it fits in with other topics on the day.

You should also check how the event is structured. Will there be a Q&A afterwards? How much time will you have? Will there be a panel discussion as well?

But the most important thing you need to do is find out who exactly is going to be there.

I’d ask the organisers for a rundown of the attendees list. If it’s a regular event – like a weekly or monthly gathering – contact people who have been before and ask them what it’s like.

When you have a good understanding of the audience – their interests, their problems, their pain points – you’ll know what’s expected of you when you’re delivering your speech.

You always want to give your audience a few tangible takeaways that they can actually use in their working life, so make a list of five to seven key learning points and shape your speech around that.

Feel free to mention your business if it’s relevant, but don’t just plug yourself – your content will do that for you.

Slides come second

Once you have an understanding of the audience, you should start putting together your main talking points. Base them off the five to seven key takeaways I mentioned before.

If you’re using slides, put them together after you’ve finalised your content. A lot of the time people put their slides together first, but that really is putting the cart before the horse.

If you do your slides after you have finalised the content, they are more likely to be more relevant and add to rather than detract or distract from your message.

Less is more when it comes to the visual part of your speech. The more slides you have, the fewer people will grasp what you’re saying.

I’ve seen people delivering presentations with the guts of 10 slides per minute, which is an awful lot.

You want no more than two slides per minute. I know that’s sometimes hard for business people because they need charts and other details, but you should try your best to keep it to a minimum.

Your slides shouldn’t be too text heavy either. There’s a brilliant book called Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds. He recommends that the maximum number of words per slide is seven.

Remember, a good presentation should be like a miniskirt. Long enough to cover the essentials, but short enough to keep it interesting.

Practice out loud

With your content and slides in place, it’s time to start practicing your speech – out loud. People think preparing a speech is looking at their slides and rehearsing it in their head. It isn’t.

I’d never suggest writing a full speech and trying to memorise it. That’s way too much pressure, because if you lose a sentence, you’re gone.

You just need to know your opening and closing, almost verbatim. The first 20 seconds and maybe the last 20 seconds. That’s it. For the rest, you’ll have your main talking points to refer back to.

When you’ve got the speech right, record yourself and listen back to it in the weeks leading up to the event.

I gave a TEDx talk last October. It was only six minutes long, but I made sure I recorded it and listened back as often as I could - when I was driving the car, in between meetings, or even when out walking.

On the day of the event, you’ll probably leave out bits, but you won’t miss your main talking points if you’ve practiced them.

Leaving out a bit of detail is not that important. Nobody knows your script, only you. If it’s that critical, it will likely come up in the Q&A.

Don’t sweat about stumbling. When I gave my TEDx talk, on my first line – my first line - I fluffed it. But it kind of relaxed me.

In an ideal world, you’ll present without notes because we’ve got to just trust ourselves that we’re going to get the main bits across.

Having said that, if you’re new to speaking and you’re not as confident as you’d like to be, it’s perfectly fine to have cursory notes at the podium to help you along. Whatever it takes to help make a success of your speech.

What to do with your hands

If you don’t know what to do with your hands when you’re speaking, just use them as if you’re talking normally. It’s as simple as that.

When you’re comfortable with your content, you’ll be less aware of what you’re doing with your hands and they’ll just flow as normal.

I sometimes find people in my public speaking workshops clutching their hands in the’ fig leaf’ position.

That can often be because they were told before that they use their hands too much, but if you use your hands a lot naturally – why then would you stop using them in a presentation?

The last thing you want to do is like go up to the podium and turn into the ‘speaking’ version of yourself.

Make eye contact

Never, ever, stare at the back of the room. A wall is an object, which isn’t going to give you any reflection back. We feed off each other, so when you’re speaking make eye contact with people in the audience.

The beauty of looking at people is that you’ll go into ‘conversation mode’ and feel like you’re just talking to one person. Your tone and engagement level will change. It’s much more personal.

If you find eye contact quite scary, look at people’s eyebrows in a smaller room. In a bigger room, you’ll get away with looking at their forehead. Either way, you’re looking at a person not the wall, which is just horrendous.

You should always think of your speech as a conversation, not a presentation. It’s just you standing up there.

You’re not Martin Luther King. You’re not a politician. You’re not ‘delivering’ a speech. You’re just sharing information.

Barbara Moynihan is founder of On Your Feet , a company that provides public speaking training. This article was written in conversation with Conor McMahon as part of a series of masterclasses with some of Ireland’s most influential business people.

If you want to share your opinion, advice or story, email [email protected].

more from fora

25 Examples of Rhetorical Strategies in Famous Speeches

I’m not trying to be cheesy! An emotional response is a meaningful response, and that reaction stays with you long after the presentation is over. Whenever you think of that speaker or of that topic, your brain will bring back those feelings for you- whether they be of motivation, inspiration, sadness, empathy, or otherwise.

Rhetorical strategies use language to convey special meaning and/or to persuade someone. Basically, these strategies can be used to intentionally invoke feelings in others.

If your first reaction to all this is “Huh?” that’s okay- so was mine. Here’s how I understand it now: rhetorical strategies = emotional connection = memorability.

If you’ve ever considered becoming a master presenter (no judgement if you have), you need these tools in your repertoire ASAP. They’re just so effective!

25 Examples of Rhetoric Strategies in Speeches don't believe me

Don’t believe me? All the cool kids are using (or used) them – I’m talking about thought leader Simon Sinek , technology guru Steve Jobs, past American president Barack Obama, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., and even good old William Shakespeare.

Unless you’re above any of these greatly respected people, I’m betting that you could benefit from a little rhetorical strategy in your next speech!

25 rhetorical strategies from the best minds

We’ve compiled 25 rhetorical strategies from the most memorable presentations on the planet so that your next presentation is undeniably memorable. Ready to begin?

1. Alliteration:

Two or more words in a row that start with the same sound.

“They are part of the finest fighting force that the world has ever known. They have served tour after tour of duty in distant, different, and difficult places.” – Barack Obama

2. Allusion:

A statement that hints at something instead of being direct about it.

“You must borrow me Gargantua’s mouth first. ‘Tis a word too great for any mouth of this age’s size” – Shakespeare

3. Anadiplosis:

Repeating the last word (or words) of a sentence at the beginning of the next sentence.

“Tonight, we are a country awakened to danger and called to defend freedom. Our grief has turned to anger, and anger to resolution.” – George W. Bush

4. Analogy:

A literal comparison of two things.

“A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.” – Winston Churchill

5. Anaphora:

Using the same word (or words) to begin 2 or more sentences (or paragraphs) that follow each other.

“I trust Hillary to lead this country because I’ve seen her lifelong devotion to our nation’s children – not just her own daughter, who she has raised to perfection but every child who needs a champion: Kids who take the long way to school to avoid the gangs. Kids who wonder how they’ll ever afford college. Kids whose parents don’t speak a word of English but dream of a better life. Kids who look to us to determine who and what they can be.” – Michelle Obama

6. Anastrophe:

A reversal of the typical ordering of a sentence.

“This much we pledge, and more” – JF Kennedy

7. Antistrophe:

Repeating one (or more) words at the end of a sentence.

“It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation: Yes, we can. It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail towards freedom through the darkest of nights: Yes, we can. It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness: Yes, we can” – Barack Obama

8. Antithesis:

A contrast of thoughts.

“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” – Neil Armstrong

9. Asyndeton:

Leaving out conjunction words (as or and) from a sentence.

“…and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.” – Abraham Lincoln

10. Assonance:

Repeating a vowel sound in a sentence.

“I feel the need, the need for speed” – Tom Cruise (from the movie Top Gun)

11. Chiasmus:

The reversal of the latter of two parallel sentences.

“And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country” – John F. Kennedy

12. Diacope/Tmesis:

Inserting a word (or more) between the components of a compound word.

“Free at last, free at last; thank God almighty, free at last!” – Martin Luther King

13. Epistrophe:

Another name for antistrophe (see above).

“…and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth” – Abraham Lincoln

14. Expletive:

Using a word or phrase only to fill out a sentence for grammar, rhythm or balance.

“… we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving …” – Winston Churchill

15. Germinatio:

The repetition of a word within the sentence.

“That’s 58 songs every second of every minute of every hour of every day.” – Steve Jobs

16. Hyperbole:

Exaggerating a description for emphasis.

“Best version of Google Maps on the planet, widgets, and all with Edge and Wi-Fi networking.” – Steve Jobs

17. Hypophora:

Posing a question that you will answer yourself.

“When the enemy struck on that June day of 1950, what did America do? It did what it always has done in all its times of peril. It appealed to the heroism of its youth” – Dwight D. Eisenhower

18. Litotes:

An understatement that expresses an affirmative by negating its opposite.

“I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

19. Meiosis:

A massive understatement.

“The situation has developed, not necessarily to our advantage” – Emperor Hirohito, announcing to the Japanese people that atomic bombs had been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

20. Metaphor:

Comparing two unlike objects to provide a clearer description.

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” – William Shakespeare

21. Parallelism:

using a sequence of identical constructions in writing

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I may remember. Involve me and I will learn.” – Benjamin Franklin

22. Scesis Onomaton:

Repeating two (or more) different words with identical or similar meaning within the same sentence.

“That is heart-breaking, it is wrong, and no one should be treated that way in the United States of America” – Barack Obama

23. Simile:

Comparing two unlike things using the words “like” or “as” with an example.

“We will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

24. Symploce:

Repeating one (or more) words at the beginning and end of successive sentences.

“In the struggle for peace and justice, we cannot walk alone. In the struggle for opportunity and equality, we cannot walk alone. In the struggle to heal this nation and repair this world, we cannot walk alone” – Barack Obama

25. Tricolon:

A sentence with three clearly defined parts of equal length

Rhetorical strategies improve audience engagement

If you got a little lost amidst the English jargon, here are the 2 main takeaways you need to know:

Repetition emphasizes meaning Repetition is perhaps the most common rhetorical strategy. Whether it be the repetition of a word, a phrase, or a specific sound, it is incredibly effective. Use this strategy to build meaning behind the essential points you need to get across.
Comparisons facilitate understanding Comparisons are also an extremely popular strategy, likely because they make the subject matter more relatable. If your audience can identify with what you’re saying, that creates an opportunity for you to cultivate a connection with them.

25 Examples of Rhetoric Strategies in-Speeches summary

In sum, the best designed presentations , a slick new outfit, or a commanding voice may impress an audience initially, and can be important to gain their attention, but they lack true substance for any long-term retention. Rhetorical strategies are the single greatest tool for memorability. If you recognized even one of these examples, you just proved that rhetoric strategies are memorable. Why not start using them to your advantage?

Incorporating rhetorical strategies is kind of like learning how to ride a bike – you’re going to think you look unsure the first few times you try and you’re probably going to walk away with some scrapes and bruises. But, once you gain confidence, you’ll be able to ride circles around everyone else.

See what I did there? Here’s to being memorable!

Note: All definitions have been adapted from Your Dictionary .

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8 public speaking lessons from 57 inaugural speeches: the good, the bad, and the ugly.

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To date, there have been 44 United States presidents and on January 21, 2013 , Barack Obama will deliver the 57th Inaurgural Address. And while each speech holds tremendous historical value, very few can be considered rhetorical masterpieces. So what makes a great inaugural speech? What do they say about the president and our country? And what constitutes a success or a failure?

Curious, I decided to read each of the inaugural speeches delivered over the past 228 years, and it was not a walk in the park. James Garfield attempted the same feat prior to his own inaugural address, but quickly delegated it to an assistant. He only had 19 to read. Getting through them is a bit like eating a head of raw broccoli … very substantive, but tough to get through.

That said, between trips to the barista, I was indeed captivated. To read the inaugural speeches back-to-back is to get an abridged and narrated history of our nation. The content of each exposes the character and nature of the president and the nation at a very specific time, highlighting the priorities, principles, anxieties, and dreams. Inaugural speeches set a tone, and create context for a presidency. They mark a transition, from one era to the next … it is a reset, a nod to the past, a portal to the future ... continuity captured.

As I read the inaugural speeches, I realized early on that some were more effective than others. The deliveries range from clear to convoluted, pragmatic to pugnacious, inspired to insipid. So, when you become president, whether it is of the United States, your company, or the Lions Club, and need to give an epic address, here are eight lessons I learned from the best and worst of the inaugural addresses.

Lessons From Some Losers:

Keep it Concise.

William Henry Harrison, our 9 th president, has the inauspicious and dual distinction of delivering the longest inaugural speech as well as holding the shortest presidency. The 68-year-old delivered a two-hour speech, outside, in a snowstorm, without an overcoat. It was Thursday, March 4, 1891, and after concluding his 8,000-word speech, he remained in the cold for hours greeting well wishers before attending late-night celebrations. Unfortunately, “Old Tippecanoe” as he was affectionately nicknamed for his exploits in the Indian War, caught Pneumonia and died within a month.

Harrison’s speech is a cautionary tale that exposes a sacred rule that could mean the life or death of your performance: keep it concise. No one wants to hear a two-hour speech—especially in this day and age. No one has time. And, frankly no one has anything important enough to say that could possibly take that long … even you. My sixth grade history teacher used to say, “a speech should be like a mini-skirt, long enough to cover the subject, but short enough to keep it interesting.” He’d probably be fired for using that analogy today, but it has always stuck with me. (More on memorable quotes later.)

Be Self-Effacing, Not Self-Loathing.

Everyone likes a speech that is reflective and honest, and one way to set the stage is by using tactful self-effacement. Sharing vulnerability can personalize a presentation, engage an audience, and paradoxically convey confidence. That said there is a fine line between self-effacement and self-loathing, and unfortunately for Franklin Pierce, our 14 th president, he stumbled over that line.

On Friday, March 4, 1853, Pierce began his speech:

“It is a relief to feel that no heart but my own can know the personal regret and bitter sorrow over which I have been borne to a position so suitable for others rather than desirable for myself.”

This confessional takes humility to a new level and is problematic given that it is being delivered to a country that just elected him because of their confidence in his leadership. Perhaps it is better suited for a journal entry than an inaugural address, one purpose of which is to reinforce the confidence bestowed upon a newly elected president.

In Pierce’s defense, he was following a long-standing inaugural tradition of bowing oneself to the tasks ahead, but did so to an uncomfortable level. Almost every president prior to Pierce had expressed concern and anxiety about his new gig, starting with the first line of the first inaugural address by George Washington on April 30, 1789:

“Among the vicissitudes incident to life no event could have filled me with greater anxieties than that which the notification was transmitted by your order…”

And James Monroe stated in his first inaugural address in 1827:

“Conscious of my own deficiency, I cannot enter on these duties without great anxiety for the result.”

However, no one until Pierce stepped quite so far over the line from humility to humiliating. Be willing to expose yourself, but be mindful of the degree to which you do so.

Keep It Real.

Many historians agree that James Buchanan, our 15 th president, was one of the worst in American history, and when you read his speech there are hints as to why he became labeled “clueless.” Buchanan’s term ran from 1857 to 1861, when the issues of slavery and secession were reaching a boiling point. While Buchanan rejected slavery as an indefensible evil, he refused to challenge the constitutional establishment, even supporting the Dred Scott decision during his speech. More damaging to his legacy was his unwillingness to challenge the states that were threatening secession. What is striking about his inauguration speech is how he tries to deny and diminish the severity of the impending conflicts by peppering it with words like “simple” or “happy.”

“May we not, then, hope that the long agitation on this subject (of slavery in the Territories) is approaching its end….. Most happy will it be for the country when the public mind shall be diverted from this question to others of more pressing and practical importance.”

I am not sure what could have been “more pressing” than human rights and the looming Civil War, but words won’t wish away an issue, and Americans don’t need pixie dust from politicians. Use the speech to create context, meaning and value … address the issues, own them, and then have the courage to do something about them.

Don’t Get Caught in the Weeds.

Another tradition among early Presidential inauguration addresses was to list the principles by which one intended to govern. In today’s terms, the “principles” can read more like priorities than philosophical treatise, making some of the speeches read more like to-do lists than galvanizing speeches for the people. Take for example James Monroe’s second inaugural speech, delivered on March 4, 1817. He started off well enough discussing the humility with which he accepted the honor and his successes during his previous tenure, before pivoting to a power-to-the-people type talk regarding the success of the nation:

“The Government has been in the hands of the people. To the people therefore, and to the faithful and able depositories of their trust is the credit due.”

The speech to this point would have sufficed and he should have known to stop there. Instead he chose to lay out his “principles,” which included his thoughts on infrastructure, manufacturing, the treasury and legislature. What could have been a solid speech instead became one bogged down with administrative detail. The art of great speeches means knowing when to quit when ahead, so stay away from the weeds.

Know Your Audience, Understand Your Outcome.

Abraham Lincoln ’s second inaugural address was delivered to a war-torn and weary nation. During his tenure, 600,000 Americans had died in the Civil War, the Union troops were marching toward victory, the 13 th Amendment had passed, and it was time for the healing to begin. With the stage set, thousands of onlookers stood in thick mud at the Capitol grounds to hear Lincoln’s brief 600-word address, which has become recognized as one of the most powerful in U.S. history. In Lincoln’s wisdom, he spurned triumphalism, instead choosing a tone and message of magnanimity: “ both sides read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invoked His aid against the other.”

Lincoln’s closing statement summarized his sentiment most poignantly:

“With malice towards none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

Lincoln knew different times required different approaches. A speaker must always be sensitive to the needs of the audience. A speaker must deliver a speech with a greater purpose in mind. In Lincoln’s case, the purpose was the reconciliation and re-unification of America.

“We” not “I.”

Almost every inaugural address centers around the word “I”—“I am so humbled,” “I did this,” “I will do that.” So imagine my surprise when I read Theodore Roosevelt’s 1905 inaugural speech, which did not use the first person once. The power of Teddy’s speech, in addition to its brevity and zeal, came for the very deliberate omission of I, in favor of we. There is no question his decision was deliberate, and in doing so, brought the American people into his huddle and empowered us as team members … to work with him and each other and take responsibility for the greater good of the country.

While this tactic may not always be appropriate, I found it refreshing and effective at capturing the true spirit of democracy and cultivating communal pride:

“We know that self-government is difficult. We know that no people needs such high traits of character as that people which seeks to govern its affairs aright through the freely expressed will of the freemen who compose it. But we have faith that we shall not prove false to the memories of the men of the mighty past.”

I want to play for Team Teddy!

As an aside, Roosevelt’s inaugural celebration was the largest and most diverse the nation had seen, comprised of cowboys, Indians, coal miners, soldiers, and students, among others…a healthy cross section of “we.”

Have a Theme.

Not recognized for his brevity, Bill Clinton delivered a surprising first inaugural address which I found to be one of the most tightly constructed and inspiring in history. Delivered on January 20, 1993, the speech began with a clearly articulated theme from which Clinton never strayed: renewal.

“Today we celebrate the mystery of American renewal.”

Clinton’s speech can be characterized as one of precision, poignancy and grace … with reverence to the past (saluting his predecessor), a grasp of current conditions, and a vision for the future, this speech is one to which every public speaker should aspire. And what unified it was Clinton’s commitment to his theme.

Themes provide continuity and context, to which grand ideas can adhere.

“Our democracy must not only be the envy of the world but the engine of our own renewal. There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America. So today we pledge an end to an era of deadlock and drift—a new season of renewal has begun.”

Using the basics from Sales 101, Clinton said it, said it again, and then closed with it.

“To renew America, we must revitalize democracy.”

Employing a unified and repeated theme can guide both the speaker and the audience to favorable outcomes.

Be Quotable.

I would be remiss not to mention what many consider some of the greatest speeches in our history, and more specifically what helped make them great … memorable quotes. The quotes below hold permanent spots in the DNA of American history.

"This great nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself."

Franklin D. Roosevelt, March 4, 1933.

"My fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: Ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man."

– John F. Kennedy, Jan. 20, 1961.

"In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”

– Ronald Reagan, Jan. 20, 1981.

Of course, these are only three of countless jewels in the inaugural speeches to date, but they are arguably the most memorable. Many Americans, without knowing the context, are familiar with them and the speaker, which goes to show … if done right, a great quote in a good speech can move a nation and make a lasting impact for generations.

Please share your feedback by commenting below or contacting me at [email protected]

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Would students feel uncomfortable if I include in my lecture a quote which is somewhat sexually suggestive?

In my lecture, I am thinking of using a famous quote by Winston S. Churchill:

A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.

I like this quote because it clearly expresses the idea that while you should go over the important details in your speech, your speech should not be overly detailed.

However, I don't know if some of the students may feel uncomfortable if I use this quote in class.

Question: Should I play safe and avoid using this quote in class, in case some students are offended?

What I decided to do

Although the Churchill quote is quite memorable, I agree with the answer which says:

Whether you actually believe that or not, telling that joke gives students the impression that you do. That perception makes the classroom environment more unpleasant for a female student and less conducive to learning.

I will find another way to express my idea without the quote.

In response to comments

Several commenters have pointed out that:

My general advice is if you need to ask someone else if it is appropriate, you already know you will get into trouble.

That is good advice. I had a "gut feeling" that it was not a good idea to use this quote; partly I asked this question because I wanted to understand why it was not a good idea.

7 There are better quotes that make the same point, e.g. 'I would have written a shorter letter, but I didn't have the time.' – henning no longer feeds AI Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 12:51
8 @henning I don't think your quote expresses the same idea as Churchill's quote. – I Like to Code Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 12:54
14 My general advice is if you need to ask someone else if it is appropriate, you already know you will get into trouble. – Distic Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 15:10
It depends a lot on the country, the culture, and how you present that quote. I believe in France it could be acceptable, if given with enough historical context and oral precautions. – Basile Starynkevitch Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 15:23
1 It depends on country culture and so on. Teaching about Churchill will make it almost natural. In chemistry we and here we won't care. At least 20 years ago and where I am it was so. Now we have to write she/he.... – Alchimista Commented Dec 17, 2017 at 14:39

9 Answers 9

Avoid, but not for that reason.

Sometimes it is a teacher's duty to do things that may offend members of their class. A biology teacher who avoids the subject of evolution for fear of offending creationists is not doing their job, and there are plenty of other examples. The problem here is not that the joke could offend; it's that it gets in the way of learning.

It treats women as eye candy rather than as thinking beings, implying that a woman's clothing should be chosen for the benefit of male onlookers rather than according to her own priorities.

Humour has a place in teaching. Used judiciously, it can help hold the audience's interest and keep them engaged. But for your female students, at least, this particular joke is unlikely to serve that purpose. There are plenty of other ways to say it.

I like this answer even better than my own. – Dawn Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 16:05

I'm familiar with the quote and I understand that it's well-intended. But don't do it. You're asking for trouble. What passed as acceptable 70 years ago does not always fly today.

3 Perhaps the world was nicer back then ? You could walk down the street and people would smile and say "good morning etc" now all you see is people watching their smartphones... – Solar Mike Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 6:41
6 @SolarMike also xkcd.com/1601 – user25112 Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 8:24
19 @SolarMike No, I don't think so. I think it's just that objectification of women was considered more acceptable then than now. – Nicole Hamilton Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 16:55
13 @SolarMike I don't think this is about smartphones and headphones, I think it's about whether a joke objectifying women that might have been acceptable 70 years would still be considered acceptable today. An argument that courtesy is disappearing is not a good argument for repeating this quote in the context described by the OP. – Nicole Hamilton Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 17:59
17 Hi, @SolarMike. I say "hello" to all my neighbors, the bus driver, and even random people I cross on the street, and yet I would not like to be in a class/presentation and receive such kind of objectification. You are mixing things here that have nothing to do. The world was not nicer 70 years ago. For women, the world is significantly nicer now. – Anna SdTC Commented Dec 17, 2017 at 2:02

Honestly, I don't think the woman's skirt part adds anything substantive. You can make your point perfectly well without it. "A good speech should be...long enough..." and so forth. Including the phrase makes you seem as if you do not understand the current bounds on professional discourse.

I don't feel offended, but it makes me question your judgement.

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Airman's Odyssey What purpose does the dress serve? Although, honestly, it's remembered 70 years later, would leaving out the dress have changed that? I don't know... – jmoreno Commented Jan 28, 2018 at 1:20

Don’t do it. You only risk alienating female students, who might already feel alienated from research staff – precisely for the same reason.

Would you do it if we did a little gender-swapping exercise?

A good speech is like male genitalia; too short, and it is just uninteresting; too long, and it will hurt people.

1 You did not only swap genders though. – quid Commented Dec 16, 2017 at 16:04
@Azor-Ahai I don't understand your comment. I said that nabla did "not only sway genders" you say nabla swapped women's clothes to men's anatomy. Thus you confirm they did not only swap genders but also clothes for anatomy. – quid Commented Dec 18, 2017 at 17:51
@quid Oh, I misread your comment, i didn't see the "only," although I don't think the clothes/anatomy swap is important. – Azor Ahai -him- Commented Dec 18, 2017 at 17:53
1 @Azor-Ahai you are free to think so, but I highly doubt that this is objectively tenable. In any case I am pretty sure that many would agree that if we'd swap genders back now in the metaphor in this answer then the result would be more inappropriate than what is in OP right now, by a considerable margin. So much so that anybody asking if it was appropriate would likely be assumed to be trolling. – quid Commented Dec 18, 2017 at 17:59
To be honest, I (male) would find it in my culture to be completely ok (and even funny) to bring the new quote about male genetalia. It might be a little bit steange if presented by a man, however, if he attributed the quote so someone, it would be again ok. I'm not sure if Churchill's quote would be acceptable, though. – Haudie Commented Dec 25, 2017 at 15:35

Aside from just being sexually suggestive, this quote assumes a straight male audience. That is it’s an analogy that only works if you’re “interested” in women’s legs. In this joke the woman is an object whose purpose is to visually entertain men, not a subject who maybe chose her skirt length based on the weather not based on your opinions about her legs. Find a metaphor that works for all of your students.

When I worked at my college radio station, I got some good advice. I asked how do I know for sure whether a certain song I might want to play might be offensive to anyone. The answer I got is that if you feel you have to ask whether it is appropriate, then you shouldn't play it. I think that applies here. If you feel that you need to ask whether people might be offended, then maybe you should use a different quote.

The quote would be reasonable in a few contexts - if you're teaching history, it may be used to describe the sort of person that Churchill was. In a broader context, it could be used when showing how womens role in society evolved in the 20th century. The quote itself is historical, and academic students should be mature enough not to be personally offended by history.

But that is not why you are using that quote. You're pulling the quote out of its historical context, and try to apply it today. The fact that it was said by Churchill isn't that important here, just trivia. The subject of your lecture is not history or Churchill, but (academic) writing style.

1 Exactly. The OP isn't proposing to examine this quote academically, they are suggesting endorsing it to their students "Follow Churchill's advice: ..." – Azor Ahai -him- Commented Dec 18, 2017 at 18:14

The intent here is to be clear and concise.

Be clear and concise in your teaching.

I am a female student. I would not appreciate the use of this phrase in class, but if it was used in a smaller context with an established relaxed but respectful working relationship it would be fine for me. So, depends on the student!

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Sally says . . . eat, sleep, work, read, play, draw, bark . . .

About Sally

‘A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.’ Winston S. Churchill.

Anyway, assuming the Queen does have a speechwriter I have to say I am a tad jealous. I could really have used someone like that these last few days to help me with my words. I have had real problems stringing a coherent sentence together all week. And not just a sentence in the Queen’s English either — a sentence in any intelligible form whatsoever. On more than one occasion I have had to stop, take a breath, and remind myself — ‘Use your words Sally . . . use your words . . . ‘

(Well, I like most words. I don’t like acronyms —and I am not even sure they count as real words anyway, even though they are pronounced as such. And I don’t like initialisms either, as it turns out. Did you know there was a difference between an acronym and an initialism? I didn’t, and I am not really sure I needed to know that either, but there you go . . . )

Happily, the words beer o’clock and wine o’clock also made the grade. 🙂

New words are good (the first 2016 updates are starting to appear in the dictionaries now) but what about the old words? What about words we never see or hear used any more? What happens to them?

Wondering what other weird and wonderful words I could find I did a bit of research and discovered that there are a huge number of archaeic or obsolete words that have now gone out of fashion . I have noted down some of the more colourful ones for you (and this is only a tiny selection . . . )

bibble: to drink often; to eat and/or drink noisily (so Saturday night at the pub, then)

brabble: to argue loudly about something inconsequential (probably at the same time you are bibbling)

slubberdegullion: a slovenly, slobbering person (someone you know leaving the pub in complete ‘cattywampus’ (see next entry))

cattywampus: in disarray

crapulous: to feel ill because of excessive eating/drinking (as in ‘I’m feeling totally crapulous today.’ It seems some words haven’t changed so very much at all.)

callipygian: Having beautifully shaped buttocks (Okay nothing to do with the pub . . . unless the barmaid or barman is thus endowed.)

doodlesack: old English word for bagpipe (Not at all what I thought of I when I first saw this word.)

tittynope: a small quantity of something left over (Again, not my first guess.)

borborygmus: sound of intestinal gas (and we’re back to eating and drinking at the pub again . . . )

Mogigraphia: Writer’s Cramp (A signal to wrap this post up? )

‘Members of Parliament have been meeting regularly this year, bibbling and brabbling in constant cattywampus, while one lone piper has valiantly piped forlornly on his doodlesack trying to cover the constant borborygmus . . . .’

Perhaps I shouldn’t hold out too much hope for an interview for the next speechwriter’s job opening . . .

20 responses to “ ‘A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.’ Winston S. Churchill. ”

August 2, 2017 at 2:48 pm

Thanks for one’s marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading it, you are a great author. I will always bookmark your blog and will often come back sometime soon. I want to encourage that you continue your great job, have a nice day!

sallyinthehaven

August 3, 2017 at 7:24 am

[email protected]

July 26, 2017 at 2:02 pm

I laughed out loud to #11. Thanks for making my morning. boucles d’oreilles alhambra van cleef arpels or blanc faux http://www.lemeilleurbijoux.cn/fr/van-cleef-arpels-replica-vintage-alhambra-white-gold-earclips-turquoise-p214/

July 27, 2017 at 7:48 am

You are very welcome! 🙂

July 20, 2017 at 1:21 pm

Saved as a favorite, I actually like your site!

July 21, 2017 at 7:22 am

Thank you Bonny! 🙂

June 15, 2017 at 3:50 am

Hi , I do consider this is a superb blog. I stumbled upon it on Yahoo , I ‘ll return once again.

June 16, 2017 at 10:50 am

Thank you. 🙂

June 20, 2016 at 9:52 am

Love new words too. Borborygmus a new one for me and most appealing! Great piece. David Astle would approve I’m sure.

Like Liked by 1 person

June 20, 2016 at 11:13 am

Is he into fart jokes too?

June 18, 2016 at 10:21 am

Sally I believe you suffer from floccinaucinihilipilification & you shouldn’t, as this blog absolutely ensorcelled me! (Source: Oxford Dictionary) 😆

June 18, 2016 at 11:12 am

OMG I seem to have started something! Yay for floccinaucinihilipilification and ensorcellment . . . may there be lots more of it. 🙂

June 18, 2016 at 11:21 am

It reminds me of Column 8 in the SMH Sal, where the editor eventually says enough already on this topic! However, just have to share my starting piece when I’m training to show them how easy it is to break down medical terms to understand and pronounce them. I write Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis on the whiteboard … then take a bow..once a ham always a ham! Hope you and the girls have a lovely weekend.

Like Liked by 2 people

stevetalbot51

June 17, 2016 at 3:44 pm

Very very good Sal !! I try and learn at least one or two new words each day, but today with your help I have over achieved. Will celebrate at beer o’clock (soon) 🙂

June 18, 2016 at 7:51 am

Beer o’clock for you . . . wine o’clock for me. All’s right with the world. 🙂

June 17, 2016 at 10:31 am

Had to take a screen shot of your list of ye olde words so I can learn them!

June 18, 2016 at 7:49 am

I have the website address where I got all these words on my office computer. I’ll send it to you next week so you can learn some more. 🙂

June 17, 2016 at 10:28 am

Brilliant Sally…you have certainly found your bailiwick!

June 18, 2016 at 7:48 am

Glad you enjoyed it. Got to use my new ‘groak’ word twice last night and once this morning already . . . Is Paddington Bear a groaker too?

June 18, 2016 at 10:37 am

Total groaker Sal. I love that FB post of the black lab looking longingly at his dad with the think bubble “I see you have cheese sanmich and I have no cheese sanmich”! Looking forward to looking at that website. What about Pam’s doozies …. on my way to look them up now……

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A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.

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“ A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest. ”

“A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.”

— Winston Churchill

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Pakistan top judge sorry over ‘sexist’ comment on woman’s skirt

The chief justice, during a speech in Karachi, quoted former British prime minister Winston Churchill as saying that “a good speech should be like a woman’s skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest”.

Pakistan’s top judge Saqib Nisar on Wednesday apologised for his ‘sexist’ recent remark in which he had compared the length of a good speech to a woman’s skirt.

Nisar’s remark drew criticism on social media, as well as from the Women Lawyers’ Association (WLA) and the Women Action Forum (WAF).

During the hearing of a case on taxation, he said: “I am apologetic if I hurt anyone’s sentiments. That was not my intention. My ‘skirt’ remark was only referencing a quote by British politician Winston Churchill.”

Explaining that hurting anyone was not his intention, Nisar said “women comprise half our population”, adding that social media users were “trying to create an issue” out of his statement when there was none.

The WLA had called the remark by the chief justice “a setback for women lawyers who practice in a male-dominated profession”, adding that such statements cause “the alienation and marginalisation of women in the legal field”.

“Given the global conversation today about the impact of discrimination on women’s lives, ranging from casual sexism in the workplace to sexual assault, the statement is particularly tone-deaf, tasteless, and unbecoming of the chief justice of any country,” the WLA statement said.

WAF in its statement had criticised him, noting that the quote “reveals deep-rooted sexism and double standards women are held to which discourage women from joining the legal profession.”

“Statements that dehumanise and objectify women are not only derogatory and demeaning towards women but also contribute to the victim-blaming culture which is the biggest impediment in fighting crimes committed against women,” the WAF statement said.

The WLA had also asked the chief justice to choose his words more carefully, while the WAF called on the Chief Justice of Pakistan to issue a public apology.

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How to Style an A-line Skirt

For more of the Cut’s favorite fashion, beauty, and home finds, sign up for the weekly Cut Shop Newsletter .

Demure girl fall means you will want to be a little more dressed up for all the apple-picking and pumpkin-spice-drinking picnics you’ve been planning. So, now it is time to invest in a fabulous skirt. To help you style an A-line skirt, the Cut’s fashion director, Jessica Willis, has created a timeless, edgy, and functional look. Although it is too dressy for a picnic, it is great for a night on the town. Read on for the full breakdown.

. Start with the proportions of your skirt

A perfect A-line skirt should hit at the middle of your calf and sit right at your waist. Also, consider your body: “If you have a shorter torso, high-waisted silhouettes could visually shorten it,” she says. To remedy this, she recommends pairing the skirt with crop tops or formfitting bodysuits to elongate the torso and emphasize the fullness of the skirt.

. Add a matching balconette bra in the same print

Willis loves a lazy-girl set because “the thinking is done for you,” she says. You can spend less time figuring out your look if you have somewhere to be fast. She says this look works because it emphasizes the skirt’s fullness and your waistline, but it’s not too classic, and “the bra makes it feel less traditional.”

Plus: You can rewear the individual pieces by mixing and matching them with other items in your closet. The bra can be paired with high-waisted jeans or an oversize top with the bra peeking out, Willis says.

. Add a bitchy little heel

You’ll want to skip the loafers, sneakers, or otherwise heavy shoes and opt for something dainty. “It’s all about balance,” Willis says. The shoe of choice is a pair of bright red strappy Prada sandals with a kitten heel that matches the florals perfectly.

. Skip a big bag — add a small clutch

Why? Keep the focus on the skirt. “Wherever you’re going, all you really need to carry is a lip gloss, a wallet, and your keys,” she says.

. Add some luxury: red lipstick and diamonds

Prada Beauty Monochrome Hyper Matte Refillable Lipstick

Willis added more color with a vibrant red lipstick from Prada that matches the sandals and floral-print motif. “It has a velvet texture, and it lasts; the pigment is beautiful,” Willis says. With a blue undertone, the shade is brighter and more universally flattering.

Willis added subtle little hoops accented with diamonds from Jessica McCormack. Consider them less of a splurge and more of an investment in yourself.

Get the Look

This cotton skirt from Swedish brand A Day’s March can easily be dressed up or down, plus the mid-weight cotton works well all year-round. For a more polished look that’s ideal for the office, try this tailored skirt from Aritzia that features pleats and belt loops. We also found a fancy tiered metallic skirt for your next cocktail party. It’s made from stiff fabric that really holds its shape, so the A-line silhouette is more pronounced and dramatic.

the jess edit

The Cut Shop

Editor’s Picks

Free Speech

Cass Sunstein Wants to Help Universities Navigate Free Speech Conflicts

The legal scholar presents a wide range of speech-related scenarios that university administrators may have to navigate this fall—and in perpetuity.

By Johanna Alonso

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A blue book cover on the left reading "Campus Free Speech: A Pocket Guide - Cass R. Sunstein." A photo of Sunstein, a light-skinned man with dark hair and a high forehead, on the right.

Cass R. Sunstein’s new book about free speech on college campuses comes out today.

Photo illustration by Justin Morrison/Inside Higher Ed | Harvard University Press

In Campus Free Speech: A Pocket Guide ( Harvard University Press ) , legal scholar and author Cass R. Sunstein presents dozens of contentious free speech case studies in search of answers to what feels like an increasingly complex question: What speech can campuses regulate?

The scenarios often draw on real-life situations, such as the passage of Indiana’s new law mandating that professors provide “intellectual diversity”—which Sunstein describes as “a troubling case, and not a straightforward one”—and the incident last spring in which a pro-Palestinian student protester interrupted a dinner at the home of University of California, Berkeley, law school dean Erwin Chemerinsky and refused to leave when asked (which Sunstein concludes would warrant the student’s suspension on the grounds of trespassing).

His goal was to craft a thorough—and succinct, at just 160 pages—handbook that tackles the free speech nuances that colleges and universities might face going forward. In a phone interview with Inside Higher Ed , he discussed how he wrote the book and the key issues higher ed institutions should consider as they anticipate another fall semester rife with tensions over the Israel-Hamas war.

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The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: What was your goal in writing this, and especially in your choice to use case studies?

A: So, as the controversies were mounting [in the spring], a lot of people were saying, “It’s case by case,” or “Free speech triumphs,” or that universities need to provide safe spaces. I thought that the only way to get clear on this was just to write, for myself, a bunch of examples and to think about how they should be analyzed.

It was really a document that was, at first, just for myself, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to publish it or where I was going to publish it. As the real world proliferated the scenarios—and as history, as I investigated it, produced more scenarios—I thought, “This is the only way to make progress.” If you say that free speech is an absolute, or that we live in a place where dangerous speech is permitted, you may or may not be right. But you’re [being] too abstract to come to terms with the problems universities are actually facing. Or if you said that antisemitism and racism have no place on university campuses, that’s pretty abstract, and that probably doesn’t fit with our free speech principles.

It was really an effort to be a little bit like a plumber or doctor—trying to look at particular cases and see how they should be handled.

Q: One of the topics that you cover that’s especially relevant right now is the topic of incidental rules around free speech—meaning rules focused on an issue other than speech that end up impacting speech nevertheless, like policies against tents being erected on campus. What should people on college campuses know about these types of rules going into another semester of protesting?

A: A category that I think is reasonably well understood are content-neutral restrictions on speech, [such as saying] you can’t engage in extremely loud speech between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. That’s directed at speech, and it’s content neutral. It would be subject to a kind of balancing test, meaning, is there a very good reason for it? How extensive is the interference with free speech?

An incidental restriction is a restriction that’s not directed at speech at all. So, if you say you can’t burn your draft card, the reason for that is not to regulate speech; it’s to make sure that people have their draft cards. It’s an incidental restriction on speech, because people might try to burn a draft card in order to express opposition to a war.

The Supreme Court, in a case called O’Brien , was very permissive of incidental restrictions, but it’s not a blank check. If the incidental restriction on speech is not protecting any substantial interest and is significantly impairing free speech rights, then we have a discussion. But in general, the lower courts have been following the Supreme Court’s lead, pretty permissive with respect to incidental restrictions on speech. To evaluate them, we need to know what they are, but the burden would be heavily on the speaker who seeks to get [the restriction] struck down, unlike a viewpoint-based restriction, where the burden is heavy on the person who seeks to defend it.

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Q: Some protesters and free speech advocates are saying, “Yes, we know that tents are not allowed on campus. However, we see that in some historical cases , it wasn’t enforced, but it’s being enforced on us.” What are your thoughts on this? Do students have a good case that they are facing discrimination based on their viewpoints, if these content-neutral restrictions are being applied differently?

A: OK, let’s take two cases, one where there’s a prohibition on tents in some university space, and there have never been any tents in the university space, and there are tents that are favoring one point of view, and then the university starts enforcing the restriction there. That seems OK. There’s no evidence of viewpoint-based enforcement of the restriction.

If we have a university which is very tent-friendly, notwithstanding its formal policy against tents, and it has for the last 30 years, nodded, “Go for it, tent person,” and then it starts enforcing the anti-tent law against Republicans, that would not be acceptable. There you have viewpoint-based enforcement of a viewpoint-neutral [rule], and that would be very difficult to defend. The university would have to say that there’s something about the targeted tents that makes them different from the winked-and-nodded-at tents. Maybe they’re bigger, or maybe there are more people. That would be really a test of viewpoint neutrality.

Q: Another thing you discuss in the book is the Brandenburg test, which says speech that both intends to and is likely to incite lawless action is not protected by the First Amendment. There has been a lot of debate since Oct. 7 about whether specific words and phrases inherently incite violence. Obviously, “from the river to the sea” is a big one .

A: I’m in my backyard right now, my dog is looking at me, and my children could hear me if I spoke loudly. And if I said, “From the river to the sea,” I’m confident no one would engage in violence.

The context of those words could mean it’s directed to inciting and likely to incite imminent lawless action. But there’s nothing intrinsic to those words that necessarily means that, I’m confident. If I said to myself, walking from one space in Harvard Square to another space in Harvard Square, “From the river to the sea,” I would not be intending to incite lawless action and would be very surprised if there were any lawless action. I wouldn’t be vulnerable under the Brandenburg test.

If somebody says, “From the river to the sea” outside, let’s say, a synagogue on campus, with clear intention of storming the place and causing trespass and violence, that would be regulable.

For a university to say, ‘We’re not going to allow speech that makes students feel uncomfortable in their identity’ is in grave tension with [the idea that] academic institutions are places for diversity of view and for learning.”

Q: There’s also this question of hateful speech. There’s been a lot of controversy recently over Title VI protections, with some students and employees saying that hearing rhetoric they view as offensive on campus impedes their ability to get an education, and therefore it violates Title VI. Is that valid?

A: If a professor says, “Only men are allowed in my class,” that’s not protected by the First Amendment. That’s a form of discrimination. If the teacher says in class, “Asians just aren’t good at, let’s say, biology,” that might be a form of discrimination, unprotected by the First Amendment.

If a professor says outside of class something like, “Men handle math better than women,” that might well be protected by the First Amendment. But if a teacher basically makes some students feel unwelcome in the classroom, a university can reasonably say, “That’s a form of discrimination and not allowed.”

We wouldn’t want to say that Title VI broadly forbids members of an educational community from expressing views on the issues of the day. So, for a student to say, “I think Israel shouldn’t have been created,” nothing in a plausible interpretation of Title VI forbids that, and if there were a law that prohibited that statement, that would be inconsistent with the First Amendment.

Q: What about when a student says something like, “If a protest at the center of campus is opposing something that is fundamental to myself and my identity, then that makes me feel like I can’t study on campus and impedes my ability to get an education”?

A: Insofar as we’re talking about a public university, the First Amendment would not allow the breadth of the restriction implied by the idea of, “This speech is inconsistent with my understanding my identity, and it makes me feel unwelcome, and therefore it shouldn’t be allowed.” The First Amendment doesn’t carve out that kind of exception to free speech principles.

Insofar as we’re dealing with a private university, it’s not governed by the First Amendment, so it has a lot of room. But for a university to say, “We’re not going to allow speech that makes students feel uncomfortable in their identity” is in grave tension with [the idea that] academic institutions are places for diversity of view and for learning. So, if a white person hears people on campus say that whites are intrinsically racist, and that’s just how it is, that’s very unpleasant for white people to hear—many people, whatever their skin color, would disagree with that. But it’s allowed under the First Amendment and a private university would do well to allow people to discuss that proposition.

Q: According to your book, students think they’d be a lot more comfortable on campus if their universities regulated things they can’t regulate. Do you have any advice in terms of what universities can do to try to alleviate this tension, to make students feel like they can be comfortable on campus, even while doing everything they need to do to protect First Amendment rights?

A: To remember the words of Justice [Robert H.] Jackson in the 1940s: “Compulsory unification of opinion achieves only the unanimity of the graveyard.” Post that in large letters and emphasize that our university’s culture is one that welcomes views that are offensive. People used to think the idea that same-sex marriage was OK was profoundly offensive. People used to think the idea that universities should have half women and half men was a very, very disturbing idea. There are a lot of things we now believe that were thought to be horrible.

I confess that writing this book was quite painful for me. Much of my writing I find joyful, and some of this was quite painful, because the speech that I think the Constitution protects and the university should allow, some of it is horrifying, particularly about race, but to turn that distress at pluralism into something like gratitude to live in a country like ours, it turns the aspect of what are they saying to one of, “I’m so glad I live here.”

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ASK Vanessa

Is It Better to Be Over- or Underdressed?

A reader seeks guidance on striking the right balance between casual and formal attire at events without a defined dress code.

By Vanessa Friedman

There’s no standard dress code for events any more, which always leaves me wondering: Is it better to overdress or underdress? At a film opening recently, two guys wearing baseball caps and chore jackets were the coolest people in the room. But the few times I’ve gone casual for an event, I’ve worried that I came off as impertinent at worst and out of place at best. Is there a right way to be underdressed? — Rachel, Brooklyn

This is like “Hamlet,” the S.N.L. version. You can just imagine a host wandering around a set crying, “to overdress or underdress, that is the question?” as they beat their breast and rend their doublet. In truth, there are two camps here.

On one side, there are those who hew to what could be called the school of Coco Chanel. The famous French designer believed it was always better to be underdressed and was fond of issuing such maxims as “Elegance is refusal” and “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.”

On the other side are the heirs of Iris (Apfel), the geriatric influencer who died earlier this year. She lived her life according to the conviction that more is more: more prints, more bracelets, more fun.

Also in this camp is the designer Christian Siriano, who just made the purple pantsuit Oprah wore for her speech at the Democratic National Convention. “I truly feel that it is always better to be overdressed than underdressed,” he said when I asked. “I’m a designer who loves the glamour of it all, so for me there really isn’t a right way to be underdressed unless you are actually laying by the pool or at the beach.”

Even then, he said, the look should include “a fabulous big hat and bag.”

As with most belief systems, however, the choice between over- or underdressing is not really about which option is objectively better or worse; it’s about what is right for you. Either way, you may call attention to yourself, so consider whether you would rather do so for too much flamboyance or for a lack of formality.

And remember, ultimately what is going to make someone look right, whatever the purported dress code, is feeling confident in their skin. That’s what allows anyone to enter a room with their head up.

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People should be paid for blood plasma

Shortages are hampering the production of essential medicines

Gloved hands of a medical worker holding a bag of blood plasma

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T he trade in human blood might seem gruesome. In fact, it is essential. Plasma, the main component of blood, is a crucial ingredient for a range of medicines, from haemophilia treatments to rabies vaccines and tetanus jabs. And these days there is not enough of it to go around.

Health services around the world have faced shortages of plasma-derived medicines since at least 2018. The covid-19 pandemic made matters worse. With donors in lockdown, supply was constrained, prompting authorities in France and Italy to instruct doctors how best to ration treatments. Outside America, Australia and Canada, plasma-based medicines are underused. The situation is especially dire in poor countries, which use a fraction of the amount needed to treat even just their sickest patients. The best way to meet demand is for more countries to legalise paying for plasma.

Donation involves extracting blood, separating out the plasma and returning what remains to the donor. In many places, demand is clearly outstripping what unpaid donors provide. Fully 80% of the global supply of plasma comes from just five countries, all of which pay for it: mainly America, but also Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany and Hungary. America earned $37bn from exports of blood products last year, more than from coal or gold. Unless other countries start paying donors, though, the global shortage will persist.

Paying could even be cost-effective. Research done for Canada’s health service suggests that collecting plasma from paid donors costs less than half as much as collecting it from unpaid donors. This is because paid donors donate more, and more often, and also because the sorts of enticements countries come up with in lieu of handing out cash, such as paid days off or tax breaks, are often expensive to provide.

Two worries put countries off allowing paid donation. Neither is well-founded. The first is a concern for safety. In places such as Britain, scandals involving infected blood loom large in the public consciousness. Offering payment, critics say, encourages those who know they are ill to donate anyway, putting recipients at risk. Yet there is little evidence that plasma that is paid for is more likely to transmit disease than plasma from unpaid sources. And even if it was, plasma can be heavily processed to ensure it is safe. Although paid plasma dominates global supply, there has not been a single confirmed case in three decades of a patient getting sick from a medicine made from donated plasma. Even countries that do not allow paid donation are happy to import plasma from those that do.

The second worry is over equality. Critics note that paid donors tend to be those who need the money. Some feel uncomfortable that poorer people are allowed to open their veins. But plasma, which is mainly water, is quickly replaced by the body. Health checks exclude the truly unwell and frequent donation seems safe (although more research could be done in that area). Donors in America are prevented from giving more than twice a week, meaning that payments cannot replace income earned from work. Moreover, paid donation is still voluntary. Those who choose to donate judge that they will be better off for doing so. If it is safe, why not let them?

Blood, threats and fears

Home-grown collection isn’t for everyone. Britain rightly stopped collecting plasma in the 1990s during an outbreak of “mad cow” disease, spread by one of the few pathogens not destroyed by standard sterilisation methods. Poor countries might reasonably worry about their ability to collect plasma from donors safely. Global trade exists precisely to solve such problems. But relying on a handful of countries has its own risks. Disease still has the potential to disrupt a country’s collection, as happened in Britain. And, crucially, supply is failing to keep up with demand. Rich countries with good health systems have no good reason to ban paid plasma donations. Paying up would benefit patients both at home and abroad. ■

This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “There must be blood”

Leaders August 31st 2024

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12 misleading or lacking-in-context claims from Harris’ DNC speech

Domenico Montanaro

Vice President Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, made 12 misleading or lacking-in-context statements during her speech at the Democratic National Convention last week. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

There were about a dozen statements that Vice President Kamala Harris made during her roughly 40-minute acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that were either misleading or lacking in context.

They range from characterizations of former President Trump’s stances on abortion rights and Social Security to her plans to address housing and grocery prices.

It’s the role of the press to try and hold politicians to account for the accuracy of their statements in a good-faith way. The dozen Harris statements lacking in context are far less in comparison to 162 misstatements, exaggerations and outright lies that NPR found from Trump’s hour-long news conference Aug. 8.

Nonetheless, here’s what we found from Harris’ convention speech:

1. “His explicit intent to jail journalists, political opponents, and anyone he sees as the enemy.”

Trump has promised retribution against his political enemies, has called reporters “the enemy of the people,” and has made vague threats of jail time for reporters.

“They’ll never find out, & it’s important that they do,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform after the leak of a draft of the Dobbs decision was published. “So, go to the reporter & ask him/her who it was. If not given the answer, put whoever in jail until the answer is given. You might add the editor and publisher to the list.”

He’s made other such comments, but there’s no explicit and specific policy from Trump on this because, as with many things involving Trump, he has been vague about his specific intentions.

2. “[W]e know and we know what a second Trump term would look like. It's all laid out in Project 2025, written by his closest advisers. And its sum total is to pull our country back to the past.”

Project 2025 is the work of people with close ties to Trump through the Heritage Foundation. Trump has disavowed parts of Project 2025, and a campaign official called it a “ pain in the ass .” There’s good political reason for that. Many of the detailed proposals are highly controversial and unpopular. The website for Project 2025 lays out some of the connections to the Trump administration in black and white, as well as the group’s belief that a Trump administration will use it as a blueprint:“The 2025 Presidential Transition Project is being organized by the Heritage Foundation and builds off Heritage’s longstanding ‘Mandate for Leadership,’ which has been highly influential for presidential administrations since the Reagan era. Most recently, the Trump administration relied heavily on Heritage’s “Mandate” for policy guidance, embracing nearly two-thirds of Heritage’s proposals within just one year in office.

“ Paul Dans , former chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) during the Trump administration, serves as the director of the 2025 Presidential Transition Project. Spencer Chretien , former special assistant to the president and associate director of Presidential Personnel, serves as associate director of the project.”

In fact, CNN reported that “at least 140 people who worked in the Trump administration had a hand in Project 2025,” including his former chief of staff Mark Meadows and adviser Stephen Miller.

What’s more, CBS News found at least 270 policy proposals that intersect with the about 700 laid out in Project 2025.

3. “We're not going back to when Donald Trump tried to cut Social Security and Medicare.”

Former President Trump has pledged not to cut Social Security, the popular retirement program. While he was in office, Trump did try, unsuccessfully, to cut benefits for people who receive disability payments from Social Security.

Social Security benefits could be cut within a decade anyway, unless Congress takes steps to shore up the program. With tens of millions of baby boomers retiring and starting to draw benefits, and fewer people in the workforce paying taxes for each retiree, Social Security is expected to run short of cash in 2033. If that happens, almost 60 million retirees and their families would automatically see their benefits cut by 21%.

The problem could be solved by raising taxes, reducing benefits or some combination of the two. – Scott Horsley, NPR chief economics correspondent

4. “We are not going to let him end programs like Head Start that provide preschool and childcare for our children in America.”

This is again tied to Project 2025, but not something Trump has specifically talked about. Trump has talked about shutting down the Department of Education, but Head Start is funded through the Department of Health and Human Services.

5. “[A]s president, I will bring together labor and workers and small-business owners and entrepreneurs and American companies to create jobs to grow our economy and to lower the cost of everyday needs like healthcare and housing and groceries.”

High supermarket prices are a common complaint. Although grocery prices have largely leveled off, rising just 1.1% in the 12 months ending in July, they jumped 3.6% the previous year and a whopping 13.1% the year before that. Vice President Harris has proposed combating high grocery prices with a federal ban on “price gouging,” but her campaign has offered no specifics on how that would work or what would constitute excessive prices. The Biden-Harris administration has previously blamed some highly concentrated parts of the food chain – such as meat-packers – for driving up prices. The administration has tried to promote more competition in the industry by bankrolling new players. – Scott Horsley

6. “And we will end America's housing shortage.”

The U.S. faces a serious shortage of housing, which has led to high costs. The average home sold last month for $422,600. Last week, Harris proposed several steps to encourage construction of additional housing, including tax breaks intended to promote 3 million new units in four years. (For context, the U.S. is currently building about 1.5 million homes per year, including just over a million single family homes.) Harris has also proposed $25,000 in downpayment assistance for first-time homebuyers and a $40 billion fund to help communities develop affordable housing. She has not said where the money for these programs would come from. – Scott Horsley

7. “He doesn't actually fight for the middle class. Instead, he fights for himself and his billionaire friends. And he will give them another round of tax breaks that will add up to $5 trillion to the national debt.”

While the 2017 tax cuts were skewed to the wealthy , it did cut taxes across the board.

Large parts of that tax cut are due to expire next year. Trump has proposed extending all of them, and while also calling for additional, unspecified tax cuts. Harris has proposed extending the tax cuts for everyone making less than $400,000 a year (97% of the population) while raising taxes on corporations and the wealthy.

Under the Biden-Harris administration, the IRS has also beefed up tax enforcement to ensure that wealthier people and businesses pay what they owe. GOP lawmakers have criticized that effort, and it would likely be reversed in a second Trump administration. Both Harris and Trump have proposed exempting tips from taxation. While popular with workers in the swing state of Nevada, where many people work in tip-heavy industries like casinos, the idea has serious problems. Unless the lost tax revenue were replaced somehow, it would create an even bigger budget deficit. It would treat one class of workers (tipped employees) differently from all other workers. And it would invite gamesmanship as other workers tried to have part of their own income reclassified as tax-free tips. Depending on how the exemptions were structured, it could also result in lower retirement benefits for tipped workers. – Scott Horsley

8. “And all the while he intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax? Call it a Trump tax that would raise prices on middle class families by almost $4,000 a year.”

This appears to be a reference to tariffs. Donald Trump raised tariffs sharply while he was in office, and he’s pledged to go further if he returns to the White House. During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, washing machines, solar panels and numerous products from China. Many trading partners retaliated, slapping tariffs of their own on U.S. exports. Farmers and manufacturers suffered.

Despite the fallout, the Biden/Harris administration has left most of the Trump tariffs in place, while adding its own, additional levies on targeted goods from China such as electric vehicles. In a second term, Trump has proposed adding a 10% tariff on all imports, with a much higher levy on all Chinese goods. Researchers at the Peterson Institute for International Economics estimate such import taxes would cost the average family $1,700 a year. – Scott Horsley

9. “This is what's happening in our country because of Donald Trump. And understand he is not done as a part of his agenda. He and his allies would limit access to birth control, ban medication abortion, and enact a nationwide abortion ban with or without Congress. And get this, get this – he plans to create a national anti-abortion coordinator and force states to report on women's miscarriages and abortions.”

It is accurate to point out that the lack of abortion access across the country for millions of women particularly in the South is directly because of Trump and his decision to appoint three conservative justices to the Supreme Court who voted to overturn Roe . As president, he sided with employers , who for religious or moral reasons, didn’t want to pay for contraception, as he tried to change the mandate that contraception be paid for under the Affordable Care Act.

But it’s unclear what Trump will do again as president. He has made conflicting comments about access to contraception. Harris’s charges about an “agenda” again seem to be based on the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 . It would be accurate to warn that it’s possible, if not likely, Trump would take up the recommendations given that people close to Trump were instrumental in writing it and given that in his first term as president, he adopted many of the Heritage Foundation’s recommendations. But it’s not entirely accurate to say “he plans to create” these things when Trump himself and his campaign have not advocated for this. Trump himself has said that abortion should be left up to the states – and insisted that he doesn’t support a national ban.

10. “With this election, we finally have the opportunity to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the Freedom to Vote Act.”

This is another one of those traps politicians fall into – overpromising when it’s not something they can control. Harris needs Congress to do this, and her winning the presidency does not guarantee that any of what she wants done legislatively will get done, even if Democrats take control of both chambers.

11. “Last year, Joe and I brought together Democrats and conservative Republicans to write the strongest border bill in decades.”

While Donald Trump stood in the way of this bill passing, and it had been written with conservative Republicans, it’s not accurate to say this was the “strongest border bill in decades” unless you count 11 years as decades. The 2013 comprehensive immigration overhaul that got 68 votes in the Senate and was killed by the GOP House, did far more than this bill did.

12. “He encouraged Putin to invade our allies, said Russia could quote, do whatever the hell they want.”

While an alarming thing for an American president to say about a NATO ally, this is lacking in some context. Trump said he would say Russia could “do whatever the hell it wanted” – and Trump would not defend an ally – if that country didn’t “pay.” Trump continues to get wrong, however, that no countries in the alliance “pay” anything to anyone except themselves. What Trump is talking about is NATO countries’ goals of funding their own defense to 2% of their gross domestic product. But not defending a country from a hostile invasion would violate Article 5 of the 1949 treaty that binds the countries in battle and was created as a way to thwart any potential efforts by the former Soviet Union to expand beyond its borders.

It reads : “[I]f a NATO Ally is the victim of an armed attack, each and every other member of the Alliance will consider this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked.”

It has been invoked once: After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S.

Vice President Kamala Harris

IMAGES

Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt
Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt
Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt
Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt
Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt
Winston Churchill Quote: “A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt

VIDEO

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H&M dress make like skirt #over50#shortsvideo#shortsyoutube #springlook

COMMENTS

Long Enough to Cover the Subject and Short Enough to Create Interest
Dear Quote Investigator: The famous statesman and orator Winston Churchill was asked about the length of an ideal address, and he supposedly said: A speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest. Yet, a similar remark about sermons is often attributed to the theologian Ronald Knox.
Quote by Winston S. Churchill: "A good speech should be like a woman's
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest." ― Winston S. Churchill tags: analogy, public-speaking, simile, speaking. Read more quotes from Winston S. Churchill. Share this quote: Like Quote ...
21 Hilarious Quotes from Winston Churchill That Will Brighten ...
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest. When I am abroad, I always make it a rule never to criticize or attack the ...
Quotes for Public Speakers (No. 159)
Thanks, Rich. I have seen the quote attributed to Churchill, and it is certainly something that he could have said, knowing his clever wit. But when looking, I found so many unattributed variations. For example, this one: "A paragraph should be like a lady's skirt: long enough to cover the essentials but short enough to keep it interesting."
'A good speech is like a miniskirt. Long enough to cover up but short
Remember, a good presentation should be like a miniskirt. Long enough to cover the essentials, but short enough to keep it interesting. Practice out loud. With your content and slides in place, it's time to start practicing your speech - out loud. People think preparing a speech is looking at their slides and rehearsing it in their head.
25 Examples of Rhetorical Strategies in Famous Speeches
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest." - Winston Churchill. 5. Anaphora: Using the same word (or words) to begin 2 or more sentences (or paragraphs) that follow each other.
8 Public Speaking Lessons from 57 Inaugural Speeches: The Good ...
My sixth grade history teacher used to say, "a speech should be like a mini-skirt, long enough to cover the subject, but short enough to keep it interesting." He'd probably be fired for ...
Would students feel uncomfortable if I include in my lecture a quote
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest. I like this quote because it clearly expresses the idea that while you should go over the important details in your speech, your speech should not be overly detailed.
Comparing a Good Speech to a Woman's Skirt. Appropriate?
Join our panel of experts as they dive into a heated debate on whether the popular saying "A good #speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cove...
3 Lessons from Winston Churchill on How to Present
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest."-Winston S. Churchill. Winston Churchill, the prime minister of Great Britain during World War II, inspired courage in the whole nation during their darkest hours, going down in history for his enthralling, persuasive speeches.
'A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the
20 responses to "'A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.' Winston S. Churchill." ig. August 2, 2017 at 2:48 pm Thanks for one's marvelous posting! I quite enjoyed reading it, you
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough ...
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest." ― Winston Churchill . Winston Churchill Archived post. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Share Sort by: Best. Open comment sort options ...
"A good conversation is like a mini skirt, short enough to ...
"A good conversation is like a mini skirt, short enough to retain interest but long enough to cover the subject" Edit: google says apparently this quote is a modern version of Winston Churchill's quote - "A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest."
I've always believed that a good speech is like a girls mini skirt…
Straight women aren't attracted to other women. So mini skirts aren't "short enough to be interesting". The statement presumes a straight male audience and that the male point of view is the important one. It also assumes that the purpose of women's clothing is to attract male attention which leads to the idea that women ask and deserve to be ...
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt ...
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest." ...
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the
Related. Top 100 Quotes. • A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short ... • Life is too short to worry about matching socks. • Life is too short to remove USB safely. • The broccoli says 'I look like a small tree', the mushroom ... • The average woman would rather have beauty than brains,...
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the
George Jessel's quote about a good speech being like a woman's skirt perfectly captures the essence of delivering an engaging and captivating discourse. Just as a skirt should be long enough to cover the subject, a speech should encompass all the necessary details, ensuring the audience obtains a comprehensive understanding of the topic at hand.
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long...
A good speech should be like a woman's skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest. Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill Quote: "A good speech should be like a woman's skirt
"A good speech should be like a woman's skirt; long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest." — Winston Churchill quotes from QuoteFancy.com Top 100
Pakistan top judge sorry over 'sexist' comment on woman's skirt
Jan 24, 2018 08:40 PM IST. The chief justice, during a speech in Karachi, quoted former British prime minister Winston Churchill as saying that "a good speech should be like a woman's skirt ...
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Higher education badly needs change, but what should those changes look like? America's institutions of higher learning are failing students and teachers when it comes to free speech. It's time to ...
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Demure girl fall means you will want to be a little more dressed up for all the apple-picking and pumpkin-spice-drinking picnics you've been planning. So, now it is time to invest in a fabulous skirt. To help you style an A-line skirt, the Cut's fashion director, Jessica Willis, has created a timeless, edgy, and functional look. Although it is too dressy for a picnic, it is great for a ...
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People should be paid for blood plasma
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6. "And we will end America's housing shortage." The U.S. faces a serious shortage of housing, which has led to high costs. The average home sold last month for $422,600.