Marco Rubio weighs in on Iraq question

Public perception of the war has grown sharply negative since the early 2000s, with nearly 60% of Americans calling it a mistake in a Gallup survey from last June.

And whether the invasion was a mistake has become a central focus of the current and prospective presidential field after Jeb Bush ran into controversy by appearing to unconditionally back his brother's decision to authorize it. Bush drew criticism from both sides of the aisle, and has given multiple interviews backtracking and clarifying his initial comments, saying Wednesday that "of course anybody would have made different decisions" given what's known now.

But Rubio's comments appeared to mark a shift on the issue from just months prior, in March, when he defended the Iraq War on Fox News.

Asked if it was a mistake to go to war with Iraq on Fox News' "The Five," Rubio said, "No, I don't believe it was. The world is a better place because Saddam Hussein doesn't run Iraq."

He made similar comments in a 2010 interview on CNN's "State of the Union." When asked if "America safer and better off for having gone to war in Iraq," Rubio said, "I think the answer ultimately is yes."

"First of all, the world is better off because Saddam Hussein is no longer in charge in Iraq," he said at the time.

Asked to clarify whether Rubio had changed his mind on the war, a spokesman said there was no discrepancy between his past and current statements on the issue. He said that though Rubio said Wednesday he wouldn't have approved the invasion knowing about the faulty intelligence, the senator wasn't ultimately calling the war a "mistake."

"Bush did not make a mistake when he ordered invasion given intelligence and Saddam's actions," Rubio spokesman Alex Conant said in an email.