Gen. Colin Powell Endorses Obama in October Surprise

Talk about an "October Surprise"! It seems these days that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) just can't get enough good news at times when he needs it the most. Certainly, the McCain campaign has been trying to dominate news with charges of ACORN voter fraud, Bill Ayers accusations, and the dreaded robocall campaign in an effort to "change the subject" from the economy to whether Obama is a risky choice. This weekend, the Obama campaign gained three important pieces of good news in that a crowd of 100,000 attended Obama's St. Louis, MO rally on Saturday, Obama reported raising $150M during September from 630,000 new donors (out of a total 3.1M donors of which the most prolific givers were retirees and college students), and the biggest catch was Gen. Colin Powell endorsing Obama for President on Sunday's Meet the Press on NBC.

Without a doubt, this endorsement is Obama's biggest to date, even bigger than John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, and Christopher Buckley combined. No matter his faults during the Bush administration, 4-star Gen. Colin Powell still holds a significant role in American politics with Democrats and Republicans alike having served as Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff under George H. W. Bush, and National Security Adviser and Secretary of State under George W. Bush. This endorsement speaks to Obama's ability to unite people from polar opposites of the political spectrum as well adding to his foreign policy knowledge and negates the "experience" argument oft cited against Obama by conservatives.

Some excerpts from Gen. Powell's interview with moderator Tom Brokaw:

MR. BROKAW: If you were called into the Oval Office on January 21st by the new president, whoever it happens to be, and he said to you, "General Powell, I need from you your recommendation on where I begin. What should be my priorities?" Where would you start?

GEN. POWELL: I would start with talking to the American people and talking to the world, and conveying a new image of American leadership, a new image of America's role in the world.

GEN. POWELL: I think the American people and the gentlemen running for president will have to, early on, focus on education more than we have seen in the campaign so far. America has a terrible educational problem in the sense that we have too many youngsters not finishing school. A third of our kids don't finish high school, 50 percent of minorities don't finish high school. We've got to work on this, and my, my wife and I are leading a campaign with this purpose.

Also, I think, the new president has to realize that the world looks to America for leadership, and so we have to show leadership on some issues that the world is expecting us to, whether it's energy, global warming and the environment. And I think we have to do a lot more with respect to poverty alleviation and helping the needy people of the world. We need to increase the amount of resources we put into our development programs to help the rest of the world. Because when you help the poorest in the world, you start to move them up an economic and social ladder, and they're not going to be moving toward violence or terrorism of the kind that we worry about.

MR. BROKAW: General Powell, actually you gave a campaign contribution to Senator McCain. You have met twice at least with Barack Obama. Are you prepared to make a public declaration of which of these two candidates that you're prepared to support?

GEN. POWELL: Yes, but let me lead into it this way. I know both of these individuals very well now. I've known John for 25 years as your setup said. And I've gotten to know Mr. Obama quite well over the past two years. Both of them are distinguished Americans who are patriotic, who are dedicated to the welfare of our country. Either one of them, I think, would be a good president. I have said to Mr. McCain that I admire all he has done. I have some concerns about the direction that the party has taken in recent years. It has moved more to the right than I would like to see it, but that's a choice the party makes. And I've said to Mr. Obama, "You have to pass a test of do you have enough experience, and do you bring the judgment to the table that would give us confidence that you would be a good president."

And I've watched him over the past two years, frankly, and I've had this conversation
with him. I have especially watched over the last six of seven weeks as both of them have really taken a final exam with respect to this economic crisis that we are in and coming out of the conventions. And I must say that I've gotten a good measure of both. In the case of Mr. McCain, I found that he was a little unsure as to deal with the economic problems that we were having and almost every day there was a different approach to the problem. And that concerned me, sensing that he didn't have a complete grasp of the economic problems that we had. And I was also concerned at the selection of Governor Palin. She's a very distinguished woman, and she's to be admired; but at the same time, now that we have had a chance to watch her for some seven weeks, I don't believe she's ready to be president of the United States, which
is the job of the vice president. And so that raised some question in my mind as to the judgment that Senator McCain made.

On the Obama side, I watched Mr. Obama and I watched him during this seven-week period. And he displayed a steadiness, an intellectual curiosity, a depth of knowledge and an approach to looking at problems like this and picking a vice president that, I think, is ready to be president on day one. And also, in not just jumping in and changing every day, but showing intellectual vigor. I think that he has a, a definitive way of doing business that would serve us well. I also believe that on the Republican side over the last seven weeks, the approach of the Republican Party and Mr. McCain has become narrower and narrower. Mr. Obama, at the same time, has given us a more inclusive, broader reach into the needs and aspirations of our people. He's crossing lines--ethnic lines, racial lines, generational lines. He's thinking about all villages have values, all towns have values, not just small towns have values.

And I've also been disappointed, frankly, by some of the approaches that Senator McCain has taken recently, or his campaign ads, on issues that are not really central to the problems that the American people are worried about. This Bill Ayers situation that's been going on for weeks became something of a central point of the campaign. But Mr. McCain says that he's a washed-out terrorist. Well, then, why do we keep talking about him? And why do we have these robocalls going on around the country trying to suggest that, because of this very, very limited relationship that Senator Obama has had with Mr. Ayers, somehow, Mr. Obama is tainted. What they're trying to connect him to is some kind of terrorist feelings. And I think that's inappropriate.

Now, I understand what politics is all about. I know how you can go after one another, and that's good. But I think this goes too far. And I think it has made the McCain campaign look a little narrow. It's not what the American people are looking for. And I look at these kinds of approaches to the campaign and they trouble me. And the party has moved even further to the right, and Governor Palin has indicated a further rightward shift. I would have difficulty with two more conservative appointments to the Supreme Court, but that's what we'd be looking at in a McCain administration. I'm also troubled by, not what Senator McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said such things as, "Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim." Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he's a Christian. He's always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no, that's not America. Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president? Yet, I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, "He's a Muslim and he might be associated terrorists." This is not the way we should be doing it in America.

I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine. It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son's grave. And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone. And it gave his awards--Purple Heart, Bronze Star--showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death. He was 20 years old. And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn't have a Christian cross, it didn't have the Star of David, it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith. And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey. He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life. Now, we have got to stop polarizing ourself in this way. And John McCain is as nondiscriminatory as anyone I know. But I'm troubled
about the fact that, within the party, we have these kinds of expressions.

So, when I look at all of this and I think back to my Army career, we've got two individuals, either one of them could be a good president. But which is the president that we need now? Which is the individual that serves the needs of the nation for the next period of time? And I come to the conclusion that because of his ability to inspire,
because of the inclusive nature of his campaign, because he is reaching out all across America, because of who he is and his rhetorical abilities--and we have to take that into account--as well as his substance--he has both style and substance--he has met the standard of being a successful president, being an exceptional president. I think he is a transformational figure. He is a new generation coming into the world--onto the world stage, onto the American stage, and for that reason I'll be voting for Senator Barack
Obama.

MR. BROKAW: And you are fully aware that there will be some--how many, no one can say for sure--but there will be some who will say this is an African-American, distinguished American, supporting another African-American because of race.

GEN. POWELL: If I had only had that in mind, I could have done this six, eight, 10 months ago. I really have been going back and forth between somebody I have the highest respect and regard for, John McCain, and somebody I was getting to know, Barack Obama. And it was only in the last couple of months that I settled on this. And I can't deny that it will be a historic event for an African-American to become president. And should that happen, all Americans should be proud--not just African-Americans, but all Americans--that we have reached this point in our national history where such a thing could happen. It will also not only electrify our country, I think it'll electrify the world.

McCain-Obama III: The Professor TKO's Grumpy McNasty

OBAMA 3-FOR-3 IN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES:

Thank God for a much better debate than last week's! This was partly because other than the tax bracket and health care plan cost questions, we really didn't hear too many repeat questions like we did in the first two debates. Earlier this week, McCain promised he would "take it to Obama" and "whoop his you-know-what" in response to Obama's stating that McCain was afraid to bring up Ayers and other controversial subjects to his face. Of course, that's pretty much the same thing McCain said prior to the 2nd Presidential Debate in which he again managed to look old and out-of-place next to a Presidential, charismatic Obama. Anyway, for all the false bravado, it didn't happen for McCain. No matter how many times McCain attacked Obama in the debate format which featured both candidates seated around a table, Obama parried each attack with facts while McCain made generalizations. Obama was as calm as always while McCain seemed to have the attitude of someone who doesn't think his opponent is worthy to share the stage with him. This final debate was held at Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY and moderated by Bob Schieffer of CBS News with with the Jr. Senator from NY and former Presidential aspirant, Hillary Clinton in attendance along with Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi, Caroline Kennedy, Michelle Obama, Cindy McCain & Governor Mitt Romney in attendance.

At this point though, whether called out by Obama or not, McCain had no way to rescue his flagging numbers and improve the election outlook unless he won the third Presidential Debate of 2008 by a convincing margin. Having lost the debate by his greatest margin to date, he must find some other way to close the polling gap with Obama who currently has a 10-14-point advantage over McCain. Of course, there is always the possibility of an "October Surprise" by the Republican party. Having rehashed all of Hillary Clinton's primary attacks (Bill Ayers, Tony Rezko, Jeremiah Wright/Father Pfleger, the 3AM call, the in-experience factor, etc.) to none effect, at this point the only thing McCain can hope for is either a terrorist attack or the Republican election machine discounting or mis-counting millions of new Democratic votes on election day.

OUTTAKES & IMPRESSIONS:

The major reaction groups (surveying partisan and independent viewers of the debate) say that Obama again won the debate by even larger margins than he won the Second Presidential Debate (NBC: 65-29% as of 10:00am, 10/16/08 (41,033 polled), SurveyUSA: 56-28, Fox News: 82-18% as of 10:00am, 10/16/08 (373,943 polled), CNN: 58-31, CBS: 53-22).

CNN also ran a number of polling questions to viewers of the debate. Obama won on all measures, and debate watchers believed Obama would do a better job handling the economy by 59-24%.

Both candidates were given the opportunity to talk about their running mates as reflections of the kind of people they would bring into the government and to address whether the opposing VP candidate has Presidential qualifications. McCain took the opportunity to build up Palin but also to attack Biden. Not once did Obama attack Palin during the debate but instead praised her work with special needs children.

I was glad that Obama took the time to lay out exactly who Bill Ayers is and the fact that Ayers has never been associated with the Obama campaign. Obama also smartly noted that other members of the non-profit Annenberg Foundation board they both served on including Presidents of major research universities and Republicans including President Ronald Reagan's former Ambassador, the founder, Walter Annenberg and his wife also worked for Reagan. However, Obama didn't address McCain's other primary accusation which was about ACORN, the community organizing and voter registration organization whom McCain claimed Obama's campaign gave over $800,000 and is now engaging in alleged voter fraud. Not everyone knows the facts about the organization and their current legal issues, and voters tend to believe whatever they see and hear on TV. So I think that was a missed opportunity.

If you were wondering who the heck Joe (Wurzelbacher) the Plumber is, and whether he exists, worry no more. The LA Times Top of the Ticket Blog has posted his picture as well as the Huffington Post. I'm guessing he's a bachelor from the LAT pic, but in either case he was on CNN this morning saying that he's doesn't like Obama's tax reform punishing him if he buys a business like he plans to and it makes more than $250,000 annually. I've got news for you, Joe. If you can afford to buy or start your own business AND it's going to make you more than $250,000, you're doing much better than the average American right now.


Check out CNN's Election Center for debate video, transcript, highlights & discussion.

While other CNN analysts made a point of saying that Obama didn't seem passionate enough and was more "professorial" than necessary, David Gergen, a Presidential adviser, referred to McCain as "Grumpy McNasty" for the angry or frowning faces and eye-rolls he made whenever Obama was speaking. At least McCain looked at Obama while speaking to him this time. McCain's disdain for Obama was still evident in his very obvious facial expressions.

I want to know why McCain is always writing on the large yellow legal pad. What does he write? Both my wife and I were wondering this. After all, since McCain has been a Congressman for 26 years, why does he need to write debate notes when he already knows everything because, "Senator Obama doesn't understand"?

The funniest line of the night goes to McCain who at one point, called Obama, "Senator Government" then corrected himself.

What would the debate be without some sarcasm from McCain who pointed out a couple times he "admires Senator Obama's eloquence".

It seemed that Schieffer gave McCain the last word more often than he did to Obama.

QUOTABLES:

Obama: "Well, look, you know, I think that we expect presidential campaigns to be tough. ...two-thirds of the American people think that Senator McCain is running a negative campaign versus one-third of mine. And 100 percent, John, of your ads...have been negative."

Obama: "The fact that this [Bill Ayers] has become such an important part of your campaign, Senator McCain, says more about your campaign than it says about me."

McCain: "Senator Obama, I am not President Bush. If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago."

Obama: "If I've occasionally mistaken your policies for George Bush's policies, it's because on the core economic issues that matter to the American people -- on tax policy, on energy policy, on spending priorities -- you have been a vigorous supporter of President Bush."

Obama: "Your running mate didn't ... stop (it), didn't say 'hold on a second, that's kind of out of line.' (on Palin rally attendees shouting, "Kill him," and "Terrorist")

McCain: "I admire so much Sen. Obama's eloquence. And you really have to pay attention to words. He said, we will 'look at' offshore drilling. Did you get that? 'Look at.'"

IMAGES FROM THE DEBATE:
(Courtesy Huffington Post)