Reading the candidates’ sign language
You notice a few things when talking to seven gubernatorial candidates.
Some are obvious. Most news coverage notes the division between the politicians ( Mark Boughton, Joe Ganim and Tim Herbst) and the rich businessmen ( Bob Stefanowski, Steve Obsitnik, Ned Lamont and David Stemerman). Though it’s not usually reported, you may have realized they are all white men.
In conversation, certain words and phrases linger in the room, even as the characters change. Several talk about Connecticut’s “good bones” and the value of our state’s diversity.
The clearest distinction I could identify was in their hand gestures. Maybe it’s because such movements are often involuntary, but they seem more revealing than decisions on whether to skip the necktie.
Studies suggest people who use few gestures are perceived as cold and logical ( think Spock), and those who are expressive with their hands are recognized as energetic and friendly ( Capt. Kirk).
I couldn’t find an expert willing to translate the motions. Of course, I don’t need much analysis to assess anyone who wants to be the kingpin of a state in peril. I'm confident each of the would-be Seven Sam-urai have healthy egos. so I leave the in-terpretation to your Stefanowski : Most of the time. he's so comfortable he could be at the Thanks-giving table. glasses dangling from one hand with the other in a pocket as he awaits dessert During his videotaped 'ele-vator pitch" he poins to the cameo like Uncle Sam. minus the passion. Lamont: The Greenwich Democrat may be seeking his first office. but he's put in enough campaign miles to project ease. With his sleeves rolled up. he raises both arms while jesting look a little lice a Republican." At times. hands grip the armrests like he's trying out an electric chair. But he can become animated. wiping clean an imagi-nary chalkboard. When he aversions "playing footsie with the enemy" in refer-ence to President Donald Trump's flirta-tions with world leaden. I resist peeking under the table. Boughton: After t6 years as Danbury's mayor. he knows better than to perform for a room of journalists His hands hover. only occasionally straying from side to side as though he is playing an accordion.
Herbst: Throughout his tenure as Trumbull’s first selectman, he earned a reputation for speaking from his gut. He is a man in motion, grabbing an invisible steering wheel or spreading his wingspan to define the state deficit. As a result, he is the only candidate who wipes sweat from his forehead ( in fairness, it’s a warm room).
Obsitnik: A U. S. Navy veteran who was deployed on a nuclear submarine, he knows something about communicating through static. His hands swim several laps across the table. He mimes a hug and draws air circles.
He is also the only candidate who uses his hands to wipe a tear, after summoning the memory of informing a mother her son died while serving under his command.
Stemerman: A graduate of the “less is more school,” Stemerman’s hands spend most of the hour on the table, flat or clasped, so when he raises one finger. or the. it truly emphasizes his point. lam my own person." he says They all are. Ganim: And finally. from the "more is more school" is the man who will become a national story if he wins the primary over Lamont. He's the only candidate with "The Clin-ton Thumb." It you turned the sound off. he would at times appear to be holding a live grenade. or peering through the blinds of some faraway hotel naom. When using the word Inhumane" in reference to im-migration policies. the knuckles of his thumbs meet and his fingerprints kiss to form a heart. Maybe it's the boxer in Ganim. or the ex-con. but he keeps moving. he keeps punching the air. He is the only candidate to take a phan-tom hook shot. The other six might want to keep those hands up to block it.