Let us not discuss the economy of this country; let us also not discuss the spending habits of its citizens; and finally, let us not discuss the divide between the rich and poor; instead, let's talk about the best restaurants.

Which type of rhetorical device is used in the above example?

Anaphora is used here. anaphora is the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of a series for emphasis, and in this excerpt, the author/speaker is using "let us not" repeatedly to emphasize that they do not want to discuss certain heavy topics plaguing the country.

a common example would be martin luther king jr.'s i have a dream speech. he repeated the words "i have a dream" over and over to emphasize his beliefs.

I think the answer is anaphora. good luck!