You had a contrast of leaders yesterday.

Scott Morrison gave a lesson in how to do it properly. He spoke confidently, he was reassuring, he had plenty of money to spend, he said he was off to the footy, and it would all be okay in the end.

People worry at times like this, and this is where leadership really counts.

Contrast it to the US President who looked like a bumbling fool. We all know he can't read the auto-cue, which by the way, puts to bed once and for all that tired old complaint about newsreaders that anyone could do that for a living. It simply isn't true.

Reading an auto-cue is a skill, and Trump proves it.

He came with the headline travel ban, of course no one saw that coming. To be fair to him, it's very Trump, it's America first, it's isolationist, and it will play well.

But as for the rest of it, what a chaotic, unconvincing mish mash of jumbled thoughts it was. This is where being a President matters, and you can go back decades and not have seen such a piss poor effort.

Say what you want about any of his predecessors, they could all deliver well when it matters. When a rallying cry or call was needed, pick any one of them either a Bush, Obama of course, Clinton, and and the best of the lot Reagan. Everyone of them knew how to look, sound, and act Presidential.

Trump is an amateur at it. He closed some borders, offered a loan scheme for small business, which by the way is not a grant or write off, and the loans aren't even interest free. He talked of a payroll tax that needs Congressional support, but won't get it. So he may as well have talked about flying to the moon.

He told everyone to wash their hands, and that was that.

Meantime Morrison twice yesterday reassured Australia in a way that not only comforted, but also came with tangible help. Over 20 billion dollars of genuine help, two percent of GDP is being thrown at this. They are looking to boost growth by one and a half points. Then last night he addressed the country again, it rarely happens and when it does it has to count.

It did, look at it, look at him, you can see why he won the election in a way few saw coming.

As regards us, that sort of leadership has been absent this week, Jacinda Ardern should have fronted by now. The government should have fronted by now. They, as always, are too slow to actually do anything.

Grant Robertson has been good with the reassuring noise, but woefully short on action. So next week's package better be good.

Tough days reveal the true measure of leaders. Morrison has it, Ardern is missing in action again, and Trump at least showed.

But, my god it left you astonished, and not in a good way.