Obama certainly could have caved to the pressures of continuing negotiations with these pirates. They are holding a number of captives that this action could potentially endanger their well-being. On this one, he put our interests first and foremost. Had it been Jimmy Carter, that captain would be tied to a chair in a Mogadishu slum right now.
I also am impressed with how he handled it- no nonsense, no BS, no politicizing. Just dead a$$holes. If he really wants to impress the world, now he needs to destroy every known pirate building, hideout and home.