President Barack Obama "has been rolled by [Russian President] Vladimir Putin like a California sushi" in Syria, and it's "just been embarrassing to watch," GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Thursday.
"Whether it's the red line or Russia going in to prop up [Syrian President Bashar al] Assad, the results are the same," the former Arkansas governor told
Fox News' "America's Newsroom" host Bill Hemmer. "Putin is leading; Obama is following. I'm not sure anybody, even his staunchest defenders, can say leading from behind has led to anything but an unmitigated national disaster."
Huckabee said that if elected, he'd work to maintain the credibility of the United States.
"People need to trust and even fear the United States of America," he told Hemmer. "They don't do any of those things because this president picked the wrong side in Syria, he misjudged Yemen. He announced his intentions in Afghanistan which turned out to be a disaster. Pulled the troops out of Iraq without a Status of Forces Agreement."
Obama's problems started from the beginning, said Huckabee, as he doesn't believe the one-time senator was ever ready to be president, and his "philosophical understanding of the enemy" was not close to the truth.
As a former governor, Huckabee said he agrees with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, another GOP candidate, that a governor would be best in the White House.
"We need a governor who isn't afraid to make decisions and enforce the law," said Huckabee, arguing that state leaders are also experienced with foreign affairs after carrying out international trade deals.