Steven Long

Yesterday while on a photography trip I listened to the speech President Obama gave at the G20 conference.  Frankly, I was appalled, not at his politics, but his utter lack of leadership.  I hear folks fawn over his leadership abilities, but either they don’t understand great leadership or perhaps they are merely happy that he has accomplished some of their political agenda.  And of course doing that isn’t leadership – it is political effectiveness.  As I thought about it, these are expectations that I had of my President, my leader, that were not met:

1. I had hoped my President would give us a clear vision of how he is going to respond to this crisis – instead I heard a lot about what we are not going to do and little about what we will do.
2. I had hoped that my President would display righteous anger over the recent events in Paris – instead he seemed to reserve his greatest anger for other political leaders in his own country, people on the same team.
3. I had hoped my President would unify all of us – instead his words have led to deep divides in our nation at a time when we need unity.
4. I had hoped my President would speak forcefully and with courage in condemnation of the Islamic terrorism in France – instead it is a “setback” or a “crime” and these words communicate something much weaker.
5. I had hoped my President would admit failures and mistakes that contributed to this tragedy (and all leaders make them) – instead he admitted no errors and seemed defensive about his prior actions, which is a recipe for future failure.
6. I had hoped that my President would affirm the moral superiority of our way of life that values life and freedom – instead he emphasized his own moral superiority over those who have sincerely held, non-prejudicial concerns about terrorists sneaking into our country with Syrian immigrants.
7. I had hoped that my President would answer our concerns with truth and respect – instead he seemed annoyed with some of the questions asked of him, ones that were legitimate and thoughtful and honest.
8. I had hoped that my President would lead the nation that leads the world in opposing this blood cult that kills innocent people – instead he says America will not lead.

Great leaders always show their greatness in a crisis.  They always have a way of inspiring, uniting, and motivating people around a single compelling vision that gives confidence and security to followers in the midst of crisis.  The existence of the divide in our nation over my President’s words speaks volumes about ability to lead, and his defensive demeanor and lack of decisive language in this speech only confirm it.