Last of Our Kind

There was one endorsement left in this election season that both John McCain and Barack Obama wanted. General Colin Powell is respected across the board by both Republicans and Democrats. He is after all a Four Star General, former national security advisor, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, former Secretary of State. In layman’s terms, General Powell has some credibility when it comes down to who he wants to endorse.

Well, in a move that some may call the final nail in McCain’s coffin, General Powell chose to endorse Senator Barack Obama. He chose to endorse him because he believes Senator Obama is a, “transformational figure” and would be an, “exceptional leader.” I have to say for John McCain to hear that, it’s got to hurt. It also had to hurt to hear General Powell say that he did not believe Sarah Palin was qualified to be president of the United States. For McCain’s Campaign, it had to hurt to hear General Powell trash the judgment of John McCain.

For Barack Obama, this endorsement was music to his ears. In the final weeks this can only help. It will help with those who still believe that Barack Obama does not have the foreign policy credentials, or the experience to be President. With this endorsement, Colin Powell will reach out to the older voters (being 71 himself) and say (even if he chooses to remains silent for the duration of the election), “Do not be afraid to trust this young man with our future. Do not be afraid to believe that he is the man to take us out of these tough times of today and help us arrive at a better tomorrow.”

Now, I know the Republicans will find some way to spin this endorsement as a bad thing, but General Powell was an aide to Reagan, their dearly beloved Ronald Reagan! So, to the McCain campaign I say, “Good luck on this one.”

For those of you who feel General Powell chose to endorse Barack Obama because he is black (I am talking to you Pat Buchanan and Rush Limbaugh) I am glad that you found some sort of spin to make it through the day, but you are wrong. You are not only insulting General Powell, but insulting the American People. But we all know you thrive off of ignorance. Without it where would you be?

Now, to be fair had the General endorsed McCain, the Obama camp could have said, “General Powell is the man who took a test tube of baking soda and lied to the United Nations to get us into the Iraq War. He is the type of adviser that President Bush surrounded himself with, and this simply represents John McCain being an extension of George W. Bush.” I am sure that statement was written just in case. However, it would have been misleading and incredibly inappropriate.

Yes, General Powell did in fact play a huge part in our run up to the Iraq war. I believe that he knowingly lied to the U.N., but I also believe that he is incredibly repentant of his past indiscretions. I believe he wants nothing more than to atone for his sins and by supporting a leader who he feels is “transformational,” Colin Powell believes we can still get out of Iraq with some respect intact.

While some may jump on the aforementioned criticism of General Powell, many others will praise the General for his courage, for his “Maverick” move to reach out across party lines and support a Democrat.

I fall into the latter category and say Thank you General. Thank you for showing us that there are still “Washington Insiders” that believe what so many of us believe. We can change, we will change, and that change is nothing to fear.