The AP's Jennifer Loven thinks it does, writing:
[I]t goes some way toward dispelling the notion that a liberal Democrat with a known distaste for war — Obama campaigned on his consistent opposition to the Iraq invasion — doesn't have the chops to call on U.S. military power.
But I don't think that's a very widespread notion, and I don't think there's really anything Obama could do--short of launching simultaneous preemptive strikes against Iran, North Korea, and (for good measure) Cuba--to change the minds of those who do hold that notion. People like this blogger at Red State, who writes:
In the end, Captain Phillips wasn’t saved by the President, but by his own courageous plunge and the deadly professionalism of our men with guns. The President, you see, was saved by the Captain.
I'm just surprised that this guy's views are being treated as anything other than fringe by outlets like the AP.
--Jason Zengerle