Putting Powell in Perspective

Bret Stephens, the Wall Street Journal's ace foreign affairs columnist, has written a most perceptive piece, Powell Catches the Beltway Breeze, putting Colin Powell, his post-military career, and his opportunistic endorsement of Obama into perspective. Here's a snippet:

To what extent is Mr. Powell's endorsement of Mr. Obama a case of sour grapes?

That's one of the questions Tom Brokaw might have usefully asked Mr. Powell, rather than simply hand him a soapbox. Here's another: If America's reputation needs fixing, what part does the former secretary think he played in its malfunction?

By all means, read the whole thing.

If not for Presidents Reagan, Bush I, and Bush II, Powell would have been just one more retired general. Reagan promoted him to 2-star, then 3-star, rank and nominated him for his 4th star, Bush père moved him up to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Bush fils selected him as his first Secretary of State. As he readily admits, he and fellow Vietnam War veteran John McCain have been good friends for decades. Yet, listening to his lame and hollow excuses for deserting his friends in favor of a naïve, inexperienced candidate with whom he has nothing in common but the attribute of skin pigmentation, I really wonder about this man's seemingly limitless capacity for self-deception and rationalization.

There was a time when I hoped that the day would come when I'd have the chance to vote for Colin Powell for president. However, I'm now very grateful that he made the decision not to try for the office, for he would have been a major disappointment. In fact, by his disloyal, ungrateful, and self-serving behavior, Gen. Powell has so diminished himself in my eyes that I'll forevermore think of him as Semi-Colin.


Hat tip: Townhall.com