Major Garrett: For Young Voters It Feels Like Obama Fought The War On Terror Better Than Bush

Chris Matthews wanted to analyze the political implications of Osama bin Laden’s death with his guests Major Garrett and John Harris. Harris declared this to be an “authentic mission accomplished moment,” but Garrett warned that national security does not seem to be as prominent of an issue these days as it once was.

Matthews played a clip of Obama promising to capture bin Laden and Matthews suggested, “that’s a pretty good commercial right there, I would guess. If he can get this back in the crosshairs as an issue next year.” Garrett argued there will be a beneficial impact to Obama’s re-election campaign, but for a slightly different reason. Garrett predicted:

“Young people around the country . . . coming to the streets to celebrate. Young people who vote, and whose lives have been defined by the war on terror and all the things it has inflicted upon us, not only psychically but operationally. . . . These kids remember what it’s like to grow up with bin Laden as sort of the biggest monster in their world – he’s now gone. The war on terror feels more effectively fought under Obama than it may have to them under President Bush.”

Energizing the youth vote is what Obama did so well in 2008. Therefore if Garrett is right, and this is the start of getting them excited again, then Republican contenders for the presidency might have a tougher time than they may have originally thought.

Watch the clip from MSNBC below: