10.17.08
Powell To Endorse Obama? I Doubt It.
Colin Powell will be on Meet The Press this weekend, and speculation’s running wild that he will be endorsing Obama. As for me, I have an uneasy feeling we’ve been had.
I think Powell will endorse McCain. He telegraphed this move by supporting Senator Ted Stevens in court last week in his corrpution trial. This is McCain’s latest game-changer, as Powell will fit the “reluctant warrior” image that McCain so desperately want to project to independent voters. Powell would then have a good shot at a second chance to clear his reputation as McCain’s Secretary of State. Powell would not be offered SoS in an Obama administration because Powell’s Iraq-War supporting speech before the UN – it would ruin the credibility that Obama wants to establish. This mixed message will not be a problem for McCain, who strives to mix up his messages as much as possible; he wants conservatives to think about Palin and independents to think about his buddy Joe Lieberman. If one thing is certain, McCain needs a game-changer than will win back independent and moderate votes, and securing a Colin Powell endorsement – he’s moderate, he’s black, he’s battled with Bush/Cheney – is exactly what McCain is looking for.
Powell donated the maximum amount to McCain in the summer of 2007. If Powell doesn’t see the corruption in Ted Stevens, he won’t see it in his good friend John McCain either. This Sunday, prepare for disappointment.
(Update from Elliot) Well, turns out Stryker was wrong, Powell did endorse Obama (as I thought he would in the comments). Don’t worry Stryker, you were right about North Carolina way back when so you get a freebie 
Update by X Stryker: Well, suffice to say, I’m happy to be wrong. I’m still troubled by Powell’s support of Ted Stevens, of course. Mainly, I’m guilty of level-setting – so many people were so certain that Powell would endorse Obama that I began to perceive a possible head-fake in the works where there was none.
In the eyes of America, Powell’s endorsement helps Obama; for those of us already sure of Obama, it is Powell that is being redeemed.
xstryker said,
October 17, 2008 at 10:29 am
And if you want further proof, Bill Kristol predicted Powell would endorse Obama. Bill Kristol, like Dick Morris, is never right.
Elliot said,
October 17, 2008 at 2:03 pm
If I might disagree, it seems to me that if Powell were going to endorse McCain as opposed to Obama, they wouldn’t say things like this:
“Today Obama spokesperson Linda Douglas said she has no news on the Powell front, but the campaign would obviously love an endorsement. “We would welcome the support of somebody with such a distinguished and honorable career as General Powell,” she told me this morning, as Obama’s plane flew to Virginia for a rally. Obama has previously cited Powell as a potential member of his administration, and the two have been in touch before. “I know they talk from time to time about foreign policy matters,” Douglas said, though she did not know the last time they spoke.”
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/10/17/11579/857/90/633511
blueollie said,
October 17, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Irrelevant. Really, though it is at least interesting.
Lyn Jones said,
October 18, 2008 at 5:37 pm
While I agree, partly with the conclusion, I cannot concur with the premise. I’m not sure I believe that Powell will publicly endorse Obama. But I don’t think he’ll endorse McCain either.
First, Powell never actively sought political office. He was, in my view, vigorously persued by G.W.B. for several reasons. Bush wanted to solidify his bona fides as a so-called “compassionate Conservative”. Doing so required changing the widely held perception of the Republican Party that it is, in essence, a lily white good ole boys club. This meant that Bush would need to make a concerted effort to increase the numbers of Hispanics and African American and other racial, cultural and ethnic minorities in the Republican Party. Powell’s acceptance, along with Alberto Gonzales; Condoleeza Rice; Elaine Chao, the first Chinese American and a small number of othe Cabinet members was part of Bush’s overall strategy to affirm the integrity of his political agenda.
I’m not sure I believe that Powell will endorse Barack Obama, but I don’t think he’ll endorse John McCain either.
Powell is one of the few Americans who has enjoyed increasing popularity and prosperity after serving in political office. He has done tremendous good for our national interest as a private citizen and there is little to no incentive for him to accept another political office at the age of 72.
Lastly, John McCain is hawkish. Powell is a political moderate. The Powell Doctrine stands in stark juxstaposition to McCain’s military first, military last, non-diplomatic, interventionistic doctrine. The Powell Doctrine asks the following questions before committing our troops to war.
Is a vital national security interest threatened?
Do we have a clear attainable objective?
Have the risks and costs been fully and frankly analyzed?
Have all other non-violent policy means been fully exhausted?
Is there a plausible exit strategy to avoid endless entanglement?
Have the consequences of our action been fully considered?
Is the action supported by the American people?
Do we have genuine broad international support?
McCain has surrounded himself with people like Randy Scheunemann and Robert Kagan who are both leaders of the Project for the New American Century, a strictly Conservative think tank for foreign policy issues and an advocate for military intervention.
Powell is a moderate Republican who has supported both Democratic and Republican candidates. Powell never supported the Iraq invasion. He called the turmoil in Iraq a civil war, long before either Bush or McCain. He has proposed that the US exit Iraq as soon as possible because he does not believe we can win the conflict militarily. His positions on this issue are in opposition to John McCain’s. Furthermore, John McCain is now closely aligned with the extreme, hardcore, right wing neocons of his Party. Powell will not fit in that group and why would he want to?
MK said,
October 19, 2008 at 3:09 am
Either Powell endorses neither or he endorses Obama. If he were to endorse McCain, he would lose all credibility in the Black community. His wife Alma would KILL HIM. No way he endorses McCain. It’s Obama or neither.
bcn1stpd said,
October 19, 2008 at 1:56 pm
At 62, and incidentally first cousin 4 times removed of Robert E Lee, I wish to say that watching Powell on MTP this morning was one of the most moving moments in my political life. It truly makes me more proud of America than I’ve even been before (thank you, Michelle), nearly as proud as I’ll be when Obama wins (oh pray God) and we show ourselves as a nation and the world, that another great step has been taken in the drive to finally “overcome,” and that America CAN deliver on its highest ideals.
Anonymous said,
October 20, 2008 at 9:03 am
Well, suffice to say, I’m happy to be wrong. I’m still troubled by Powell’s support of Ted Stevens, of course. Mainly, I’m guilty of level-setting – so many people were so certain that Powell would endorse Obama that I began to perceive a possible head-fake in the works where there was none.
In the eyes of America, Powell’s endorsement helps Obama; for those of us already sure of Obama, it is Powell that is being redeemed.
I think I’ll add this comment as an update.
Matt said,
October 28, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Hahahaha, you were way off man, he endorsed Obama!