Has even Colin Powell fallen for the Great Whine of 2008?
Rumor has it that Colin Powell will say on Meet the Press tomorrow morning that he is upset at the "vitriol, bile and prejudice" being aimed at Obama on the campaign trail.
I will reserve judgment until I see what Sec. Powell- a man I have always deeply admired- is referring to if he makes that statement. Only a fool would maintain that racism plays no role at all in the resistance to Obama. But only a fool- or a person whose judgment has been distorted by emotion- would automatically equate alarm at the prospect of this particular man, having these particular positions, being elected president with racism.
If that's the equation Sec. Powell makes- and I find it hard to believe that he will- I will not be able to find words for my disappointment with a man who has been one of my heroes for years, a man who might actually have been able to heal the racial divide as president in a manner that an African-American of Obama's politics simply cannot.
I respect Sec. Powell too much to say more about his decision not to seek the presidency himself. Suffice it to say that skin color ought no more to give one a pass for a radical history and a pattern of grossly irresponsible positions on the issues than to disqualify one for the White House. And in fact, the overwhelming majority of those of us who are convinced that our nation's welfare requires Obama's defeat would feel precisely the same way if he were white.
To suggest otherwise would be virtually to provide a classic example of "vitriol, bile, and prejudice."
I will reserve judgment until I see what Sec. Powell- a man I have always deeply admired- is referring to if he makes that statement. Only a fool would maintain that racism plays no role at all in the resistance to Obama. But only a fool- or a person whose judgment has been distorted by emotion- would automatically equate alarm at the prospect of this particular man, having these particular positions, being elected president with racism.
If that's the equation Sec. Powell makes- and I find it hard to believe that he will- I will not be able to find words for my disappointment with a man who has been one of my heroes for years, a man who might actually have been able to heal the racial divide as president in a manner that an African-American of Obama's politics simply cannot.
I respect Sec. Powell too much to say more about his decision not to seek the presidency himself. Suffice it to say that skin color ought no more to give one a pass for a radical history and a pattern of grossly irresponsible positions on the issues than to disqualify one for the White House. And in fact, the overwhelming majority of those of us who are convinced that our nation's welfare requires Obama's defeat would feel precisely the same way if he were white.
To suggest otherwise would be virtually to provide a classic example of "vitriol, bile, and prejudice."
Comments
Personally, I don't see how Powell needs Obama. If anything, I would think that Powell's credentials with those genuinely in the Center would help Obama in a place where he's going to badly need it.