MSNBC host Joe Scarborough said Barack Obama's UN speech Wednesday was an example of the president "facing reality" after six years of criticizing the policies of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
"This is Barack Obama, dare I say it, chastened by the realities of the first five or six years, learning that maybe he overreacted to Bush's reaction to 9/11," Scarborough said.
"And dealing with the harsh realities of the situation he's been dealt," co-host Willie Geist said. "He understands now that this is a serious threat, and the rhetoric of the last few years doesn't apply anymore, and now it's about American force."
Scarborough said that while liberals criticize Bush for the 2007 surge, even avowed Bush critics like The New Yorker staff writer Dexter Filkins said Obama's decision to withdraw in 2011 was the "worst strategic decision" of the Iraq War.
"This is a brave new world and a frightening world," Scarborough said. "Presidents are going to overreact one way or the other sometimes."
