clearly condemn the violence. i believe he went on to say that he was in favor of background chekdz checks. he wants to keep guns out of the hands of people who are not supposed to have them. i think it s a clever moment for hillary clinton. it was, you know, certainly a point of vulnerability. but i think that he handled it well. i think that it is absolutely true that balance is out of control. i remember having you on this program several years ago when there was a question whether we would start air strikes in sear yachlt you are a member of the progressive caucus. generally has been opposed to american military engagements. you support intervention in syria at that time. do you think bernie sanders has enough command of foreign policy issues?
troops deployed in iraq and afghanistan, a financial crisis that had really set back the western economies. so he has had a series of issues, huge issues, he s had to deal with. and he his focus has been on the domestic side, on health care issues, on rebuilding the american economy. i think, on the on his external policy, i think he has been cautious, possibly to a fault. i think he has been hesitant to get back involved in military engagements in the islamic world, for example. scarred by what had happened in iraq and afghanistan. and recognizing that public opinion, the political appetite for further engagements, is very low. equally, he s taken risks. he took risks with the osama bin laden killing, which i think has really shaken the capacity of al
economies. he had a series of issues hoe had to deal with and his focus has been on the domestic side and on health care issues and rebuilding the american economy. i think on the external policies, he has been cautious. possibly to a fault. he has been back involved in the military engagements, for example. recognizing that public opinion for further engagements is lured. he is taking risks with osama bin laden killing which i think has shaken the capacity of al qaeda. to launch attacks and the political initiatives are important steps forward in terms
are weary of all these military engagements. more resisting to military engagements six years in, seeing the world as chaotic as it is, now africa, the middle east, and beyond. it s true, i don t believe people are clamoring to go to war. however, the idea the president goes to west point and says we have never been stronger? that doesn t pass the test, forget on our declining influence around the globe. it was an odd speech and it was not well received and it didn t surprise me at all given its tenor and tone. bob, what did you make of the speech? whether you look at the intervention in syria, our lack of intervention and role, or rather or intervention in libya, our lack of intervention in syria and how we played ukraine, is there a coherent, a cogent obama policy? there s so much talk. i don t think talk solves lots
he criticized past presidents like w. if you re not defending unnecessary disastrous military engagements dick cheney echoed a common refrain about the president. i think the perception around the world is increasingly negative, sean, but i think the main focus is on our president. he s a very, very weak president. maybe the weakest certainly in my lifetime. michael steele is the former chairman of the republican national committee and joan walsh is editor at large at salon, both are msnbc political analysts. a legitimate debate is coming up right now. i saw you debate and i think there s a legitimate debate here. it wasn t just the washington post which has gotten more hawkish than ever but it was the new york times that said the president didn t have a clear theme. i want joan to say, do you think the president laid out a clear