Romney's foreign policy speech and Chicago's arrogance

>>> okay. welcome back to mortga" morning joe ." beautiful shot of capitol hill in washington. the sun has yet to come up, but it's time it to wake up. we have two must reads for you. thomas friedman and joe scarborough .

>> i love hearing those two names in the same sentence.

>> what? your's is really good. so is friedman's. we'll start with that. mitt romney gave a foreign policy speech on monday that can be boiled down with one argument, everything wrong with middle east is traced to a lack of leadership by president obama . if in speech is any indication of the quality of romney 's thinking on foreign policy , then we should worry. it was not sophisticated and described in the complex aspirations of the people of the middle east . it was not accurate in describing what obama has done or honest about the prior positions romney has articulated. it was not compelling or imaginative in terms of the strategic alternatives it offered. the worst message to send right now to middle easterners is their future is bound up to what we do. it is not. they're rarely more complicated and more in need with radical new approaches by us and men. would anyone like to comment?

>> well, yeah. i mean, barack obama four years ago when he was running for president was just slashing and burning george w. bush 's foreign policy . bush didn't understand iran . if we just spoke to them and talked to them unilaterally everything would be okay. the same thing with gitmo. i'm going to close it down a year. bush and cheney were too draconian. he kept a lot of things. it's easier for any candidate, for mitt romney or barack obama to the point fingers at the guy running the country and has to worry about keeping americans safe.

>> i wouldn't agree with na completely.

>> this is a one issue candidate and no curiosity in foreign affairs . curiosity is not the right word. no soul or passion for it. he's a business guy.

>> it's a checklist. check it off. i gave the foreign policy speech, and i reached new heights of vagueness.

>> he was misleading on what this president is doing. the one thing that's different than four years ago is he was sort of misframing the current president, the current administration strategies, especially pertaining it to sanctions on iran and how we're dealing with iran . it was not accurate, and it was a little bit irresponsible.

>> not to be point-counterpoint but i thauz president obama hit george w. bush and dick cheney with a sledgehammer accusing them of wanting to shred the constitution and not respecting rights and wanting to destroy america's standing across the world for enacting policies that barack obama sxwroe bidand joe biden have kept in place.

>> sam stein.

>> i would make the point that the complexity of the foreign policy can challenges we face doesn't lend ifrts to a campaign speech. look at the air rack spring alone. the revolutions in separate countries present different challenges. what works in egypt might not work in libya and certainly doesn't work in syria. you can't distill it to something to show more strength and resolve. on the same token, obama has a lot of trouble figuring out what america's imprint should countries. it's almost impossible to make it into a political issue because you have to do it in such a vague marns that, you know, you end up with columns like thomas friedman 's.

>> it would be the final debate and a challenge, because i think most americans understand it's a lot easier to complain from the cheap seats whether you're barack obama in 2008 or mitt romney in 2012 then being the guy sitting at the desk having to make the decision day in and day out. how do i protect americans at home? how do i protect americans --

>> i wouldn't have done if i were romney , especially pertaining to the middle east from politico. we'll move on now. this is your piece you wrote for politico. obama 's rocky mountain horror show . is the 44th president no more than a mediocre political talent who has one of the greatest runs of luck in history? it and did that luck begin it to run out in denver last wednesday during the homestretch of his final campaign. a week later many democrats fear that it did. it is possible that the political class has overestimated barack obama 's tal lenlted for too long now. i suspect wednesday night was more the result of an arrogant campaign underestimating a former massachusetts governor . that proved to be a dumb thing to a guy that breezed through harvard, saved a winter olympics , signed a landmark health care bill with with ted kennedy by his side, raised five gifts boys and retains the love and respect of a woman he first met in elementary school . like every campaign that cross swords with ronald reagan , chicago's arrogance blew up in their face. the question is whether barack obama will suffer the same fate as governor pat brown and president jim my carter. the answer to that question is anyone's guess.

>> joe, when you write i picture clive owen and " love actually " when he's typing on the twirt.

>> actually he's hunched over a computer.

>> it's an ascot.

>> just that whole scenic thing.

>> do you have a pipe?

>> good column.

>> thank you. we would the big question before, mike, whether mitt romney was up to it before the debate. it was a fascinating question. can this guy that saved and turn around other organizations, can he not save himself? the great question being asked by democrats now, did we buy into something that wasn't what we thought we got? can he rise to the challenge? i personal think barack obama is going to answer the bell and do very well.

>> definitely.

>> i think the big problem is they were so arrogant, the entire operation, toward mitt romney .

>> no doubt.

>> nethese are a group of people that saw barack obama feed a state senator who was under scandal, who saw barack obama win the u.s. senate race because his main opponent took his wife to strip clubs who won the presidency after eight years of george w. bush . i don't think he's had his back against the wall. i love it. it's fascinating to see the character of this man and see how he responds.

>> well, you know, you can't show up to the next debate if you're the president of the united states clearly accompanied by a level of disdain that was so apparent visually. what am i doing here with this guy? he had absolutely no respect for mitt romney . you know, you hear that over and over again internally, but he showed it visually. he showed it when he was on stage with governor romney the other night. he cannot show up like that again.

>> it was also a strategy, though. he was playing four corners offense. he felt like he had a lead and took the air out of the ball. he can't afford to do that. there's still four weeks left. he'll be a totally different guy in the next debate.

>> i don't think so. i think he arises to the occasion and it will be great.

>> ahead this morning, senior adviser to the obama re- election campaign , robert gibbs . we'll be right back. ally bank. why they're always there to talk. i love you, james. don't you love me? i'm a robot. i know. i know you're a robot! but there's more in you than just circuits and wires! uhhh.

>> a machine can't give you what a person can. that's