[Goose]

His short statement explains his data based decisions with trusted subject matter experts and how he is working with allies internationally to resolve a world-wide crisis.

I'd agree that presentation would sound more "presidential", but the action(s) taken would still highly depend on _which_ experts the president believed.

I agree with both the above. The other thing to remember is that POTUS, whoever that may be, is bound by laws that prevent him from doing certain things. Most (almost all) of the time, that is a good thing. He is also somewhat bound by custom in cases where the legal situation is gray (even though the current POTUS seems to not always react that way). Practically speaking, he is also bound by what he believes is politically possible. By this I do not mean what is politically best for him, but rather what congress and the American people will go along with. These strictures also apply to governors and mayors. These strictures remove lots of things from the table.

Looking back in time, the populace often says "Why did they not act sooner?" Sometimes, it was because what to do was very unclear. Other times, it was clear to the leader but had it been attempted, he would have faced a furor and probably have been forced to walk back.

[Goose]

His short statement explains his data based decisions with trusted subject matter experts and how he is working with allies internationally to resolve a world-wide crisis.

I'd agree that presentation would sound more "presidential", but the action(s) taken would still highly depend on _which_ experts the president believed.

I agree with both the above. The other thing to remember is that POTUS, whoever that may be, is bound by laws that prevent him from doing certain things. Most (almost all) of the time, that is a good thing. He is also somewhat bound by custom in cases where the legal situation is gray (even though the current POTUS seems to not always react that way). Practically speaking, he is also bound by what he believes is politically possible. By this I do not mean what is politically best for him, but rather what congress and the American people will go along with. These strictures also apply to governors and mayors. These strictures remove lots of things from the table.

Looking back in time, the populace often says "Why did they not act sooner?" Sometimes, it was because what to do was very unclear. Other times, it was clear to the leader but had it been attempted, he would have faced a furor and probably have been forced to walk back.