Following Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama, I suggested that he was speaking more to his own legacy than to any real people out there in voterland, I believe going so far as to suggest that there couldn't possibly be any undecideds left in Washington DC.
I stand Corrected.
Reagan Chief of Staff Endorses Obama.
Showing posts with label Colin Powell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Colin Powell. Show all posts
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Quick Hits
I’m sick and don’t feel much like writing, but here are some interesting articles for your perusal:
Ted Stevens is on trial and it sounds like he’s just as delightful a witness as he is a senator.
This article in the New York Times lays out exactly why our current foreign policy of force projection and democracy promotion by force is so badly misguided. Even in a country that was badly in need of regime change, like Afghanistan, having a dozen children killed by an occupying army, you simply can’t win. Get this in order or get out now. And, of course, almost as a bonus for anyone looking, this continues to make Palin look like a fool.
PW beat me to it, but Colin Powell (along with just about every newspaper in America) endorsement of Barack Obama seems significant. It’s surprising to me the degree to which Obama is the adult choice in this election. There really isn’t a doubt.
And of course, Obama raises one hundred and fifty million dollars in September alone. That’s just unbelievable. The average donation size was $86. This is an unusual election cycle in so many ways.
Ted Stevens is on trial and it sounds like he’s just as delightful a witness as he is a senator.
This article in the New York Times lays out exactly why our current foreign policy of force projection and democracy promotion by force is so badly misguided. Even in a country that was badly in need of regime change, like Afghanistan, having a dozen children killed by an occupying army, you simply can’t win. Get this in order or get out now. And, of course, almost as a bonus for anyone looking, this continues to make Palin look like a fool.
PW beat me to it, but Colin Powell (along with just about every newspaper in America) endorsement of Barack Obama seems significant. It’s surprising to me the degree to which Obama is the adult choice in this election. There really isn’t a doubt.
And of course, Obama raises one hundred and fifty million dollars in September alone. That’s just unbelievable. The average donation size was $86. This is an unusual election cycle in so many ways.
The Last Big Endorsement?
The story of the day, assuming that the rest of the evening will be relatively quiet, is Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama. See video and print in the NYT.
On the one hand, Powell retains a certain aura unique to him as a sort of post-partisan keeper of the national interest, not only from the length and breadth of his service to the nation, but to his ability to serve very different administrations in quite effective ways.
Powell's time with W. has done much to tarnish that reputation- few things undermine one's claim to expertise more severely than Powell's UN appearance.
Which brings us to this morning. Nothing about the material we have so far seen seems to suggest that Powell was anything other than calculating in turning on his party and personal friend, John McCain. At that level, he provides an eloquent example of what putting his country first actually looks like. More, however, is the extent to which this feels like Powell speaking as much to his own legacy as to any other audience. In fact, who other than future historians (or current ones) could he be talking to? Are there really still undecideds in the Washington defense community, and if so, will this decide them? I hardly think JTP will be particularly swayed by the endorsement of someone so obscure as a former secretary of state. Despite the eye-rolling of certain American historians whenever I broach this theory, I remain convinced that had some different choices been made, Powell could have mopped the floor with the entire Republican field back in 2000, crossing many of the lines Obama is crossing in this one, and putting American policy on a very different track today. Clearly, Powell is unimpressed by the achievements of his party over the last decade. Today is something of a nod toward that alternative past, and a hopfull vision for a very different future.
**update**
Of course, there are other interpretation. Mr. Limbaugh in this thoughtful piece suggests secretary Powell is a racist. Way to go, Rush.
On the one hand, Powell retains a certain aura unique to him as a sort of post-partisan keeper of the national interest, not only from the length and breadth of his service to the nation, but to his ability to serve very different administrations in quite effective ways.
Powell's time with W. has done much to tarnish that reputation- few things undermine one's claim to expertise more severely than Powell's UN appearance.
Which brings us to this morning. Nothing about the material we have so far seen seems to suggest that Powell was anything other than calculating in turning on his party and personal friend, John McCain. At that level, he provides an eloquent example of what putting his country first actually looks like. More, however, is the extent to which this feels like Powell speaking as much to his own legacy as to any other audience. In fact, who other than future historians (or current ones) could he be talking to? Are there really still undecideds in the Washington defense community, and if so, will this decide them? I hardly think JTP will be particularly swayed by the endorsement of someone so obscure as a former secretary of state. Despite the eye-rolling of certain American historians whenever I broach this theory, I remain convinced that had some different choices been made, Powell could have mopped the floor with the entire Republican field back in 2000, crossing many of the lines Obama is crossing in this one, and putting American policy on a very different track today. Clearly, Powell is unimpressed by the achievements of his party over the last decade. Today is something of a nod toward that alternative past, and a hopfull vision for a very different future.
**update**
Of course, there are other interpretation. Mr. Limbaugh in this thoughtful piece suggests secretary Powell is a racist. Way to go, Rush.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
