Watching the President of the United States articulate his positions and strategies can be a tedious even stressful experience for us political junkies. With less than two years remaining in his presidency, Mr. Obama still has difficulty comporting himself as a world leader with purpose and conviction during otherwise choreographed press conferences. He always seems just a bit out of his element, that clearly being the soapbox in any given university faculty lounge.

As history is now being written in ways that will be the focus of countless classroom discussions for generations to come, “the leader of the free world” seems nothing short of uncomfortable in his own skin when making his case on the world stage. During a recent appearance with Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel, the POTUS appeared out of his league and reduced to stuttering and cheesy punch lines as he attempted to navigate the critical discussions of Islamic terrorism and Russia/Ukraine. As I focused in on Chancellor Merkel, she seemed almost indifferent to and even somewhat irritated with a president she has some history with to be sure.

Consequently and with a new war powers request from the WH officially on the table for Congress to consider, there is much to do in the way of diplomacy and coalition building in the short-term. “We the People” and our posterity need a leader, not a classroom ideologue absent the skill set necessary to see our nation through this critical period.