Well, maker up your mind, man. IS it vacuous, or is it militant and expansionist?? I see neither quality in his speeches.
I personally feel you and your esteemed referent are reading the speeches of some imaginary substuitute. I see neither of those qualities in his political rhetoric. And rhetoric it what it is; but it is an order of magnitude better rhetoric than we've seen in a long time. It has a breath of fresh air in it, which perhaps your jaded sensibilities don't detect.