El Gayinero Argentino

Obama Says U.S. Lacks Leadership on Virus in Commencement Speeches

The virus has “torn back the curtain on the idea that the folks in charge know what they’re doing,” the former president said. “A lot of them aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”

Former President Barack Obama delivered a virtual commencement address on Saturday. It was one of his few addresses to a national audience during the outbreak, and he said a leadership void had created a clear mandate for the graduates.

By Audra D. S. Burch and John Eligon

• Published May 16, 2020Updated May 17, 2020, 4:16 a.m. ET

Without the springtime rituals of traditional graduation ceremonies, former President Barack Obama delivered two virtual commencement addresses on Saturday, urging millions of high school and college graduates to fearlessly carve a path and “to seize the initiative” at a time when he says the nation’s leaders have fumbled the response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The speeches, aired hours apart, combined the inspirational advice given to graduates — build community, do what is right, be a leader — with pointed criticism of the handling of an outbreak that has killed more than 87,000 Americans and crippled much of the economy.

“More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they’re doing,” Mr. Obama said in his first address, directed at graduates of historically black colleges and universities. “A lot of them aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”

Although Mr. Obama did not mention President Trump by name, some saw his comments as criticism of his successor.