"...28, 29, 30! All there!"
Posted on 10/19/2008 7:56:13 AM PDT by JustTheTruth
WASHINGTON - Former Secretary of State Colin Powell endorsed Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., for president on Sunday, criticizing his own Republican Party for what he called its narrow focus on irrelevant personal attacks over a serious approach to challenges he called unprecedented.
Powell, who for many years was considered the most likely candidate to become the first African-American president, said in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he was not supporting Obama because of his race. He said he had watched both Obama and his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, for many months and thought “either one of them would be a good president.”
But he said McCain’s choices in the last few weeks — especially his selection of Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska as his vice presidential running mate — had raised questions in his mind about McCain’s judgment.
“I don’t believe [Palin] is ready to be president of the United States,” Powell said flatly. By contrast, Obama’s running mate, Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, “is ready to be president on day one.”
Powell also said he was “troubled” by Republican personal attacks on Obama, especially false intimations that Obama was Muslim and Republicans’ recent focus on Obama’s alleged connections to William Ayers, the founder of the radical ’60 Weather Underground.
Stressing that Obama was a lifelong Christian, Powell denounced Republican tactics that he said were insulting not only to to Obama but also to Muslims.
“The really right answer is what if he is?” Powell said, praising the contributions of millions of Muslim citizens to American society.
“I look at these kind of approaches to the campaign, and they trouble me,” Powell said. “Over the last seven weeks, the approach of the Republican Party has become narrower and narrower.”
In an interview Sunday on Fox News, McCain said he was not surprised by the announcement.
“I’ve always admired and respected General Powell,” said McCain, who cited the endorsements he had received from former Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger, Alexander Haig, James Baker and Lawrence Eagleburger. “We have a respectful disagreement.”
Powell, a retired Army general who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the first President Bush before becoming secretary of state in the current administration, is one of the most highly decorated military officers of modern times and an admired figure in both parties. The Obama campaign is likely to cite the endorsement as an answer to critics and undecided voters who have questioned the foreign policy credential of Obama, a first-term senator whose national experience amounts to four years in the Senate.
Powell said a major part of his decision to turn his back on his own party was his conclusion that Obama was the better option to repair frayed U.S. relations with allies overseas.
“This is the time for outreach,” Powell said, saying the next president would have to “reach out and show the world there is a new administration that is willing to reach out.”
In particular, he said, he welcomed Obama’s president to “talk to people we haven’t talked to,” a reference to Obama’s controversial pledge to hold talks with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
“I think that [Obama] has a definite way of doing business that will serve us well,” Powell said.
We always knew that Powell was a lib when he ran the State Department. The one thing he got right initially was Iraq.
My take is that he was hoping Obama could win without having to make a public endorsement, thus preserving his supposed high-and-mighty "non-partisan" credential, but McCain's increased momentum the past few days and the great threat of the suddenly public discussion about Obama's socialism - caused Powell and Obama to make this splash this morning. Let's change the subject, so to speak ...
Fellow conservatives, let's not let them get away with it.
RINO alert.
“RINO alert.”
Powell is no RINO. He is a Democrat through and through. It was the Republicans who gave him a chance and he spit in their eye.
Transforming our nation from capitalism to socialism.
RACIST alert
The one who was on the right leading the charge on Iraq is now on the left. Hey Colin, you lose those WMDs you talked about to the SC, or you just got them hidden. From conservative to communism in one transformation.
Don’t buy an ounce of it, it’s all about race.
You want to know the true character of Colin Powell, go back and examine the Novak-Armitage affair. Slime ball supreme.
His views line up pretty well with "The Messiah"
Transformational alright.
We’ve never yet tried socialism on a massive scale.
Transformational alright.
We’ve never yet tried socialism on a massive scale.
Oh man...it’s over now.
The blacks will vote 95% for Obama after hearing this.
/s
I disagree with you that he got Iraq right initially- he’s the main reason we had to go back 10 years later because he was the one who convienced Bush Sr. not to go all the way to Bagdad and finish the job.
Colin Powell was always a social liberal, he has been haging now with all th eJimmy Carter types, and he has been dancing hip hop and talking about his black roots.
I heard him say Obama will “electrify” the World. How so? Obama will frighten our allies and embolden our enemies.
Colin Powell wants to be first to welcome his new Islamic overlord in hopes they come after him last.
i suppose his absence at the Repub convention spoke volumes. i find it puzzling that he is not leaving
the Repub party where he will be persona non grata
now.
While Benedict Arnold served his country he turned on it and tried to destroy it at its beginning and now we have Colin Powell that had served his country only to turn on it and support someone who will destroy it and bring on its ending. He is a traitor and there is no way Obama wins on foreign policy and with what we are facing. He wants the United States to disarm while we are facing Iran, Syria, Venezuela, North Korea, Russia and China. Powell is a disturbing individual who has marked himself with dishonor.
"...28, 29, 30! All there!"
Powell denounced republicans for saying Obama is muslim??????? The republican party and candidates have done no such thing.
WHAT? Without Senator McCain choosing Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate the race would be over!! This remark is just plan wrong, perhaps Mr. Powell isn't the genius the leftist medias claim.
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