Anti-Trump MSNBC host Chris Matthews praises president for calling off Iran strike

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President Trump hits Iran with new sanctions

Reaction and analysis from the 'Special Report' All-Star panel.

MSNBC's Chris Matthews has been one of the president's most unhinged critics, but even he couldn't resist praising Trump for refraining from a military strike on Iran, saying he's "glad" he didn't go through with it.

President Trump revealed last week that he called off the strike against Iran following them shooting down a U.S. drone roughly ten minutes before the strike was set to launch after he learned that roughly 150 Iranians would have been killed.

TRUMP SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDER DELIVERING 'HARD-HITTING' SANCTIONS AGAINST IRAN

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"If Trump had taken military action, I would have come down hard on him," Matthews told the panel Monday evening. "I think it’s good that he hesitated. I think hesitation before using military action and asking how many casualties there are going to be on the other side is a good question."

The "Hardball" host invoked the lives lost during the Iraq War and how those that died "weren't the bad guys."

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"The fact he found out it was 150 or so people -- we went into Iraq, everybody said it was going to be quick and easy, it was going to be a slam dunk," Matthews elaborated.

"We may have killed somewhere between 150,000 people and a million people, Iraqis, who were just there, they were just Iraqis, they weren’t the bad guys. We only make that calculation now. It's time that -- I like the fact that the president asked up front to his NSC people: how many people will die if we take this step? I think it’s good and I’m glad he did it.”

The Trump administration announced on Monday that the president approved "hard-hitting" sanctions on Iran, hoping to specifically target Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his associates.