It was good to see Colin Powell endorse Barack Obama this morning on Meet the Press.
I've always liked Powell, not only because he was born in the Bronx and attended City College (two of my proudest accomplishments), but because he always has had a way of cutting through the hype and getting to the core of the issues at hand.
Powell said his reasons for not voting for McCain, a long time friend, were two-fold: McCain's response to the economic crisis has not consistent and clear. And Sarah Palin, McCain's choice for VP, is unfit for the office, in Powell's assessment.
Powell thinks Obama, on the other hand, has displayed good judgment and leadership capacities, especially in the economic crisis that still besets us.
Those are about as sensible reasons anyone could want for endorsing a candidate for President - sensible not only for a thoughtful Republican like Colin Powell, but for anyone. Indeed, Powell's complete 30-minute endorsement of Obama, with the detailed reasons he offered, was the best-reasoned endorsement I recall ever hearing of anyone.
Powell will have to live forever with going before the United Nations and assuring Americans and the world that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. He can't go back in history and change that, because he now regrets that he had been misinformed by the CIA.
But Colin Powell went a long way today in doing something very right and balancing his position for the good on that great cosmic scale.
6 comments:
Paul: This is a good thing. We need more prominent GOP'ers to shoutout that "the emperor has no clothes" -- straight up, Sarah Palin is a cubic zirconia in a Tiffany storefront.
In 2000, although I'm a Democrat I gave serious consideration to both John McCain and Colin Powell. I applaud Colin Powell and hope that this will begin to repair his Bush-tarnished legacy.
/jimy_max
Paul: Moderate Republicans now have a "get out of jail free" card to vote for the other guy. Let's hope they use it.
/jimy_max
This endorsement speaks volumes and I believe it will be a needle mover for two relevant voter segments this election: (1) moderate Republicans who are becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the extreme rightward direction of the McCain-Palin campaign and (2) people who are holding back on Obama-Biden primarily because of foreign policy and national security concerns.
Aside from the blemish on his record in relation to the Iraq war, General Powell still garners tremendous respect from the vast majority of Republicans, and every Republican President in the last three decades has sought his advice on National Security and Foreign Policy issues. I hope that General Powell's endorsement will sway the votes of some members of the two above-mentioned segments away from John McCain and Sarah Palin and towards Senators Obama and Biden.
This election is still too close for my comfort, and the excellent news about General Powell aside, it will be important for those of who support Senator Obama to get to the polls on election day (or sooner if you can!) and vote not only to ensure his victory, but also to demonstrate the greater sense of unity and solidarity our country desperately needs right now.
Comments welcome: http://whenelephantsfly.blogspot.com
Well said, Jimmy and WEF...
It certainly makes me more comfortable with a potential President Obama...
I am glad to see Colin Powell throw in his support for Barack Obama. He made some insightful points on Meet the Press. It is sad that people like Limbaugh discount it as a black thing. By the way, here is a website I found that shares all the Sarah Palin Photos and supports Barack Obama!
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