People News

Colin Powell goes Obama

By April MacIntyre Oct 19, 2008, 16:51 GMT

Ex secretary of state and retired general Colin Powell breaks with his party and endorses Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama. Former US Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had served in the first Republican administration of President George W Bush, on Sunday announced he was backing Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in next month's election. EPA/MATTHEW CAVANAUGH

Former US Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had served in the first Republican administration of President George W Bush, on Sunday announced he was backing Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in next month's election. EPA/MATTHEW CAVANAUGHColin Powell, who served in the Bush administration, declared his preferences Sunday by announcing his intentions for the upcoming election in November.Powell described Obama as a "transformational figure.""He has both style and substance," Powell said on NBC. "Obama has displayed a steadiness; showed intellectual vigor. He has a definitive way of doing business that will do us well."The long-awaited endorsement by Powell caught many GOP pundits off guard, who expressed dismay at his choice on several key Sunday morning political wrap up shows.The news of Powell's endorsement comes as record amounts of money has been raised for the campaign coffers of Obama, who drew the largest crowd of the campaign, an estimated 100,000 people in St. Louis, according to CNN.The turn in the polls and the visible outpouring of support for Obama has Arizona senator John McCain in overdrive, likening his opponent's policies to socialism, and that his fund-raising is suspect, and that as president he would raise taxes with his "partners Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid" in the Democratically controlled House of Representatives."There are a lot of strange things going on in this campaign," McCain said Sunday on Fox News, referring to the ACORN voter fraud investigation.Obama's camp told the press that they were unaware of the endorsement before the television interview Sunday morning.Powell also questioned the tone of the attacks from McCain, and Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin's ability to handle the office of president.Powell, who still refers to himself as a Republican, answered reporters' questions outside NBC's Washington bureau after taping "Meet the Press.""I think that Senator Obama brings a fresh set of eyes, fresh set of ideas to the table. I think that Senator McCain, as gifted as he is, is essentially going to execute the Republican agenda, the orthodoxy of the Republican agenda with a new face and a maverick approach to it, and he'd be quite good at it, but I think we need more than that.""We have two wars. We have economic problems. We have health problems. We have education problems. We have infrastructure problems. We have problems around the world without allies," he said. "And so those are the problems the American people want to hear about, not about Mr. Ayers, not about who is a Muslim and who is not a Muslim."McCain was asked about Powell's endorsement on Fox news Sunday."I have always admired and respected General Powell," McCain said. "We have a respectful disagreement."

On the Web

Blowing Up Blogs

Place your ad here
Loading...

Barack Obama - View Barack Obama Pictures - Barack Obama News

Click to launch this Barack Obama gallery

Colin Powell - View Colin Powell Pictures - Colin Powell News

Click to launch this Colin Powell gallery

John McCain - View John McCain Pictures - John McCain News

Click to launch this John McCain gallery

Your Talkback on this Story

Latest Headlines in People

Older Talkback

page: 1

it is obviousOct 19th, 2008 - 20:20:00

they are all part of the same club and the same corruption will continue under Obama.

Just look at his economic team - with Robert Rubin who was with the treasury, with Citigroup, and now with the developers and Obamas economic team.

they will do exactly what every other politican has done, make us pay for developers to build sick overcrowded housing as high as they can

there is nothing new here

this is no change

and we will pay for it one way or the other

Vote Third Party

Report this comment

page: 1

People News

Colin Powell goes Obama

On the Web

Barack Obama - View Barack Obama Pictures - Barack Obama News

Colin Powell - View Colin Powell Pictures - Colin Powell News

John McCain - View John McCain Pictures - John McCain News

Your Talkback on this Story

Latest Headlines in People

Older Talkback

Like M&C on Facebook

Viral Web

Sites We Like

In Monsters and Critics

Corporate

The Fine Print