October 19, 2008
Colin Powell is not a "Real American"
I don't know if he still lives in the part of Virginia (McLean) that isn't "Real Virginia", but his endorsement of Barack Obama clearly proves that he is not a "Real American". Now Palin can slam Obama for palling around with Ayers and Powell. This could be the game changer that McCain has been waiting for.
Presidential Race 2008
Posted by LatteSipper at October 19, 2008 10:29 AM
General Powell is a true American in every sense of the word. I have not felt that he has been "a true Republican" for some time. He has held out-of-party-mainstream positions on several issues, endorsed GOP begrudgingly when at all, and it was long felt that he might endorse Senator Obama.
My biggest gripe is that he waited until Senator Obama had a big lead. The man's physical courage is clearly beyond reproach, but I question his political courage. He played coy with reporters throughout the race but he chose now to make his stand.
Welcome Home, ls, it is good to hear from you. I'm a little disappointed that you choose to fabricate a quote from Governor Palin to spark an indignant reaction. Have you any evidence that the McCain campaign is actively besmirching Powell?
General Powell is a true American in every sense of the word. I have not felt that he has been "a true Republican" for some time. He has held out-of-party-mainstream positions on several issues, endorsed GOP begrudgingly when at all, and it was long felt that he might endorse Senator Obama.
My biggest gripe is that he waited until Senator Obama had a big lead. The man's physical courage is clearly beyond reproach, but I question his political courage. He played coy with reporters throughout the race but he chose now to make his stand.
Welcome Home, ls, it is good to hear from you. I'm a little disappointed that you choose to fabricate a quote from Governor Palin to spark an indignant reaction. Have you any evidence that the McCain campaign is actively besmirching Powell?
Posted by: jk at October 19, 2008 11:14 AMJK beat me to it... endorsements during big leads are not brave.
Posted by: AlexC at October 19, 2008 11:35 AMNo, it was not my intent to claim that the McCain campaign has attacked Powell in any way. I was alluding to the McCain/Palin approach of late (and general Republican approach during most of this decade) to question the patriotism of those who don't toe the party line. Whether it's Palin on "wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America" or Michelle Bachmann calling Obama anti-American. I expect Republicans and little 'l' libertarians to point out the many areas where they disagree with Senator Obama's views and policies and to argue that he's not the right man for the job - that's how political discourse should work. I take issue with their standard operating procedure of questioning the patriotism of anyone they're trying to defeat in an election and anyone who would vote for said target. We'll see in a couple weeks, but I think the Republicans may have gone to the well once too often on this one. PS - I agree with you regarding Colin Powell's political courage ... I've found that lacking on numerous occasions.
Posted by: LatteSipper at October 19, 2008 11:52 AMGeneral Powell is a credit to the fabric of America. He has served our country well, held prestigious offices under the Republican party. What he did today was announce who he feels has the judgement and temperment to lead this nation with dignity and discipline.
Posted by: Afinbro2 in Houston at October 19, 2008 12:28 PMI believe that most people (including myself) have little appreciation for the difficulty that Colin Powell had in this. There are already the whispers that this is an 'African-American' thing. There are those (from both parties) who will use *any* opportunity to disparage and besmirch the reputation of anyone who opposes their views.
If you recall Colin Powell declined running himself, citing fears of negative repercussions - and I recall a statement by Barack Obama that Powell had advised him that this would be a dangerous course for him to pursue - both politically and personally.
It is easy to tell someone else they weren't being brave when one doesn't have to stand in the line of fire oneself... (though I admit that I also long for more leaders who will do so)
Posted by: Dean at October 19, 2008 12:57 PMIgnoring the "Afinbro2" and "Dean" flyby comments and responding directly to latte...
It really isn't possible to discuss patriotism in a climate where the very notion of what ideas constitute "the American way" are in dispute. Maybe we can get into that one later on.
You talk about how political discourse "should" work, and I agree with you. But those who don't toe the DEMOCRAT party line are terribly frustrated when a major party presidential candidate (Obama) has been involved with a known domestic terrorist (Ayers) to a sufficient extent to warrant further investigation of whether there are any common goals. And yet, no such investigation is forthcoming from the "inquisitive" media bent on bringing "truth" to light.
Do you suppose the NYT or any other leading news organization would assign a reporter to look into reports that Sarah Palin or John McCain had lunch with Timothy McVeigh (or anyone remotely connected to him) at any point in the last 40 years?
Posted by: johngalt at October 20, 2008 3:11 PM | What do you think? [6]