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Go Home Powell For Obama?

THE PLANK JUNE 26, 2008

Powell For Obama?

BY JASON ZENGERLE

Robert Novak thinks it's likely:

His tenuous 13-year relationship with the Republican Party, following
his retirement from the Army, has ended. The national security adviser
for Ronald Reagan left the present administration bitter about being ushered out of the State Department
a year earlier than he wanted. As an African American, friends say,
Powell is sensitive to racial attacks on Obama and especially on
Obama's wife, Michelle. While McCain strategists shrug off defections
from Bruce Bartlett and Larry Hunter, they wince in anticipating
headlines generated by Powell's expected endorsement of Obama.

Hmm, I wonder who Novak's source is for this: Richard Armitage?

Meanwhile, Mark Halperin provocatively floats the notion of Powell as the Democratic convention keynote speaker. Makes sense to me: I'll see your Lieberman and raise you Powell.

--Jason Zengerle 

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17 comments

One can laugh all one wants at Obama's "change" meme, but unless I'm misreading the signs, there is some kind of genunie re-alignment going on in this country,and Lieberman and Powell (should this rumor be realized as facts) are singposts to the change: Lieberman a reactionary one  (we need to cling to the national security state at all costs) and Powell a progressive one (the future requires us to be a global citizen leader, not a global bully).

- sdemuth

June 26, 2008 at 9:32am

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Powell for veep?

- epicciuto

June 26, 2008 at 10:24am

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I think McCains best option is to give the VP for McCain as well (if that is what epic means, and not Obama's VP). McCain can pitch it as being a guarantee that the race will not be about race, and that if he were to win with Powell on the ticket it would be legitimate and not because of racism. Powell in accepting will be doing a great service to the country, regardless of his affinity for Obama (if he truly has one, he might be sensitive to racism, but that doesn't mean he likes Obama personally just because they are both black)

Beyond that, a McCain-Powell ticket does offer at least something inspiring. If McCain just goes with another lily white male, and if he were to win, he would have a one term Presidency treading water, and he will be quickly forgotten as a Gerald Ford type figure, he has to kick start his bid somehow and I think Powell as VP would be a great kick start.

- blackton

June 26, 2008 at 10:36am

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I saw the general interviewed months ago and there wasn't much he didn't agree with regarding Obama. Even on Iraq (he saw problems with Barack's firm deadline) he said he wanted to keep the lines of communication open.  Powell claimed he wouldn't endorse (why not McCain?) but would inform us of his choice...

- michael

June 26, 2008 at 10:39am

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I actually did mean Powell for veep for Obama. I don't think you need another white on the ticket -- I don't think a white guy veep is going to make a racist vote for Obama. I remember interviews with some of the people who said they wouldn't vote for anyone with the name Hussein, but they would have voted for Powell. You've got your reaching-out-to-Repubs genuine-cross-of-party-lines factor, you've got your foreign policy experience and gravitas factor.

Although Blackie, I agree it would be a good choice for McCain, and for the reasons you cite, were Powell willing.

- epicciuto

June 26, 2008 at 10:58am

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NO to Powell as Obama's VP (no glad-handing elected experience, doesn't seem to have the stomach for it).

NO to Powell as McCain's VP (Powell is against most of what McCain stands for, thinks McCain's FP cred is bogus, not viewed as a conservative, wouldn't attack Obama, like, ever). NO as in NO chance in hell.

YES to a full-throated Powell endorsement of Obama coupled with a prime-time convention slot, as Jason suggested.

- thetraytiger

June 26, 2008 at 11:02am

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Powell endorsing Obama would be a coup.  It would help innoculate him against charges he's naive or stupid on military intervention and international affairs.  Nobody with half a brain can question Powell's experience and seriousness on military and foreign policy matters.

The problems with Powell as VP candidate are definitely there, though.  There's a) the aversion to politics that traytiger wrote about.  If powell wanted to run for president, he could have a couple of times already (and perhaps won).  I don't know if "he doesn't have the stomach" is the right way to put it.  I just have the feeling he's put off by politics and thinks campaigns and fundraising are silly.  B) His experience on foreign affairs is only matched by his inexperience on domestic issues.  Although I do not doubt that Powell has well-thought-out and highly developed opinions on various domestic policies, the fact that all of his public positions dealt exclusively with foreign policy might make him an unbalanced VP choice, as he has no experience with domestic policy politics.  C) There are probably some people out there who would be more wary of two black people on the ticket than one.  Granted, the gulf between zero and one African American on the ticket is larger than between one and two, but I can see some people who have enough moral strength to overcome any racism that would prevent them from voting for Obama because he's black not taking the next logical step and voting for what would be seen as an all-black ticket.  (I'm not suggesting that the only reason anyone wouldn't vote for Obama is racism, but overcoming latent racism to vote for two black men is a steeper moral hill to climb).  D) Powell's highly public presentation to the UN asking for support for the Iraq war.  Like it or not, it will be brought up a whole lot, and during every single debate, Powell will have to be asked about the reasons why he did what he did, and having the number two on the ticket be an extremely visible instrument in the disasterous Iraq war wouldn't help Obama's change thingy.

Choosing Powell as McCain's #2 would have A and B as problems (obviously not C, although it might cause some of the more latently and overt racists who might otherwise vote for McCain stay home).  D would be even more of a problem for McCain, as his credibility is largely on foreign policy (the surge) too.  If this election is increasingly about domestic issues, McCain/Powell would be burned toast.

- bigfish

June 26, 2008 at 11:39am

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Powell threw his lot in with these Bush oligarchs and to be blunt, got f-----d in the you know what. On some level, he deserved the shabby treatment...lie with dogs, etc.

So, I think that he has taken the cure for electoral politics and who can blame him? His career has been forever tarnished with that shameful UN presentation. That is a wound that will throb with this erstwhile honorable man for the rest of his life. This is what separates him from the Bushies: He actually is ashamed of his role in the Lie.

I do think Powell will endorse Obama and that will be a plus for BO. I would seriously doubt that Powell, even if he privately wants to tear the heart out of the GOP and feed it to his dogs, will offer himself up as anyone's VP. I get the sense that he wants to stay far away from politics and try to mend his reputation and soul.

- thejauntyboulevardier

June 26, 2008 at 11:42am

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Powell as Obama's primary Nat'l Security go-to-guy would be a better way to assuage people's timidity at supporting Obama on Nat'l Security grounds. He might be retired but that doesn't mean Powell isn't still popular on all fronts for a majority of Americans. I don't think he'd want to be VP but certainly Powell would humor the thought of being Sec. of Def. and undoing all the damage wrought by Rummy and his chummy chums.

- singlespeed

June 26, 2008 at 11:57am

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This is what I was referring to <http://tinyurl.com/28uvaq>

Listen to what he said and did not say. This is a few months old, but at the time he seemed to have little problem w/supporting Obama and I figured he was going to wait as long as possible to take a position. No, I didn't see any of the other candidates matched up with the standards he ticked off while Obama was close to his points of interest.

- michael

June 26, 2008 at 12:01pm

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I don't see either happening, but I agree with blackton that powell would be an excellent choice for mccain veep (just don't think he'd go for it -- it would look like he was undercutting Obama for a shot at being, ultimately, the first black president and immediately being the first black vp).  

- Lymon1

June 26, 2008 at 12:21pm

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Powell as VP, as National Security Advisor, as Chief-of-Staff. It all sounds good to me. My first choice: Ambassador to China. Much of our future depends on China, and I think Powell in that role would signal the Chinese, and the world, how much we value the relationship.

- fougasseu

June 26, 2008 at 12:24pm

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Cookie's all over this one.

To which I would add that the Powell (Weinberger) Doctrine, though not without flaws, weren't none too shabby in the Gulf War, compared with the Alfred E. Neuman Doctrine that has given us the opportunity to crawl our way out of the Iraq War like a French Quarter tourist gazing through an impressive hangover at his empty wallet as he staggers back to his hotel while the Goddess' Blazing Spotlight of Guilt rises over the eastern horizon. (Don't ask me why I know so much about this analogy.)

Powell adds a nice dose of anti-neocon antibody to Team Obama.

- williamyard

June 26, 2008 at 12:34pm

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Some people are concerned that out-sourcing the Secretary of Defense portfolio to a Republican would support the damaging view that Democrats are not to be trusted in the area of national security.    While this is a legitimate concern, IMHO the selection as Sec.Def. of either Powell or Hagel as a strong symbol of bipartisanship and a new way of doing business would trump this concern.

- JackR

June 26, 2008 at 12:36pm

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"Nobody with half a brain can question Powell's ..."

So, in other words, the Republican attack machine will be all over him in a heartbeat and every nice thing any republican ever said regarding the man would immediately be forgotten.

- GSpinks

June 26, 2008 at 3:26pm

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Much as I personally like Powell and would hate to see his defection, it's interesting to contemplate Powell, who is seen by the Left as Bush's enabler  for the invasion of Iraq, being embraced by the Left.

It is very easy to imagine the MoveOn and Kozy Crowd going insane.  But, Powell would no doubt help Obama with the independent swing voters.

- ChanRobt

June 26, 2008 at 7:35pm

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It looks like the idea of Powell as Democratic convention keynote speaker is a nonstarter, according

- Anonymous

July 2, 2008 at 12:34pm

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