Former Secretary of State and 5-star general Colin Powell, a Republican and a member of both President Bush's cabinets (i.e. George W. Bush, the current president and former president George HW Bush). On the surface, a powerful Republican has endorsed the Democratic presidential candidate and a black man has endorsed someone of his own race. What are the deeper implications and what do people have to say about it?
To start off, why is Powell endorsing Obama? Powell tried to explain himself on NBC's “Meet the Press” now anchored by Tom Brokaw: “It isn't easy for me to disappoint Senator McCain like I did this morning and I regret that”. Hm. It's interesting that Powell isn't apologizing to McCain. Powell, if we can remember, perhaps made himself famous by telling Chinese officials that he "regretted" that US planes flew into Chinese airspace. Continuing on with his endorsement of Obama, Powell said “But I firmly believe that at this point in America's history, we need a president that will not just continue, even with a new face and with the changes and with some maverick aspects, the policies that we have been following in recent years”. Powell must have caught on to Obama's "failed policies of the last 8 years" rhetoric. “I think (that) we need a transformational figure. I think (that) we need a president who is a generational change and that's why I'm supporting Barack Obama”. Let's do some calculations here. General Powell was born on April 5, 1937 which makes him 71 this year (2008) while Obama was born on August 4, 1961 which makes him 47 this year. This means that Powell was 24 when Obama was born so that Powell is old enough to be Obama's dad.
For now, Obama seems to be thrilled to have Powell's endorsement: “I am beyond honored and deeply humbled to have the support of Gen. Colin Powell. Gen. Powell has defended this nation bravely and he has embodied our highest ideals through his long and distinguished public service…And he knows, as we do, that this is a moment where we all need to come together, young and old, rich and poor, black and white, Republican and Democrat”. However, we must ask this question again: having heard Obama's rhetoric (i.e. hearing him rail about “the failures of the last 8 years”), how useful/beneficial is Powell's endorsement?
McCain was quick to respond and he sounded disappointed: “I've always admired and respected General Powell. We're longtime friends. This doesn't come as a surprise, but I am also very pleased to have the endorsement of four (former) Secretaries of State - Secretaries Kissinger, Baker, Eagleburger and Haig. And I am proud to have the endorsement of well over 200 retired Army generals, but I respect and continue to respect and admire General Powell”. McCain may be grasping at straws here. Is he trying to cushion the fall? It sure sounds like it. It sounds like McCain is saying "OK, I tried to get Gen. Powell"s endorsement, but he chose to support Obama instead so I'll have to be content with what I've got', but there's no denying that McCain is disappointed.
Why is McCain disappointed?
Powell thinks that Obama is qualified to be president. McCain's response o-n “Fox News Sunday”: “We have a respectful disagreement”.
Next up: what does Powell think about Sarah Palin's leadership style? “I don't think she's ready to be president of the United States”. This is a huge shot in the arm for McCain who has spent months trying to show how capable Palin is.
Political heavyweights, both supporters and opponents, weighed in.
Missouri governor Matt Blunt, a Republican and former Ohio Rep. Rob Portman shrugged off the endorsement, seeing it as insignificant, even though both of their states are key battleground states. According to Blunt, talking to Bob Schieffer on “Face The Nation”, “I don't know that it will make a difference in Missouri. You know, Missourians admire Colin Powell for his many years of service to our country, but in the end, they're going to evaluate where the candidates are on issues that are important to them”. Translation: Blunt thinks that Powell's endorsement is insignificant (i.e. Obama will win with or without it).
Portman's take: “I don't think (that) it makes a big difference. Endorsements are typically overrated, I think. But Colin Powell is well respected. Endorsements are typically overrated, I think. But Colin Powell is well-respected. I was interested to see that he said this morning that either man would be a good president. It didn't surprise me a lot because I've heard General Powell talk about both candidates. He says (that) he respects both men, but he's always had a special admiration for Senator Obama”. This is by far the most interesting opinion in this article. Key Statement: “…he respects both men, but he's always had a special had a special admiration for Senator Obama”. This isn't entirely true. Powell was always the outsider in the Bush administration which is why he resigned as Secretary of State in 2005 after being part of the team that authorized the second Iraq war in 2003 (the others of course, were National Security Advisor, Condoleeza Rice, the current Secretary of State) and the now-disgraced former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. In politics, if you don't like candidate A, you choose candidate B. There is very rarely any middle ground. Key Difference between Blunt and Portman's statement: “Blunt says that it will not make a difference while Portman says that it won't make a big difference. The probable difference: psyche.
According to Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, a democrat, “General Powell is not seen as a dividing figure, but a uniting figure. Senator Obama convinces those of us who want to see a greater unification of the nation that he's the right guy. Second, General Powell is not an ideological figure. He's a pragmatic person. And so, those of us who are, you know, pragmatists first who worry about results and trying to do the right thing and manage a government well, I think (that) they'll see the endorsement by General Powell very positively. Finally, it vouches for the senator in terms of that critical issue. We know (that) he has plans to make a change in direction of national security policy. To have the confidence of General Powell in this election is very important. Virginians care about this. We're a state that loves the military. A lot of installations, a lot of people in service or veterans. So, General Powell's endorsement will mean a lot to Virginians, especially those undecideds and independents”. Whew. So how important is Powell's endorsement of Obama to Kaine? It's critical.
Finally, here's Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz: “We have thousands of military retirees in the state of Florida. And I think what Colin Powell's endorsement does say is (that) it shows Barack Obama can build bridges across party lines. He's going to be able to reach out and bring in and embrace different ideas and you know, isn't necessarily, you know, cut from one particular cloth”. The key phrases here are undoubtedly “build bridges across party lines” (bipartisanship), “embrace different ideas” and not necessarily “cut from one particular cloth”. So, Wasserman-Schultz is another strong advocate of the support that Powell has given Obama and this is reflective of most of the people surveyed in this story.
However, the bottom line to this endorsement is still a question: does Obama really want to be supported by a "Bush crony" as he has called current and former officials of soon-to-be-outgoing President Bush?
