The Loss of a Sense of Grace
After Aretha Franklin passed away, one of the video clips shared on social media showcased Aretha singing “Natural Woman” at the Kennedy Center with president Obama and Michelle in the audience. The association of Aretha Franklin and Obama is noteworthy because it represents something we’ve lost in the past couple of years both in the presidency and as a country, and that is, a sense of grace. Obama had many flaws as a president. He was not a political animal. He could not twist arms like Lyndon Johnson. He was too reasonable with his opponents. When he reached across the aisle, he expected someone to grasp his hand and instead it was slapped away. Instead of withdrawing from Afghanistan as he promised he would, he consulted the generals who surprise, surprise, asked for more troops. He refused to punish Wall Street when they bet against America and won while the rest of us lost. And he turned the funds for rebuilding the infrastructure over to the states resulting in the state