Former Secretary of State Colin Powell was the surprise Republican who popped up at Tuesday night’s edition of the Democratic National Convention, where he delivered a blistering assessment of President Donald Trump’s foreign policy and endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
“With Joe Biden in the White House, you will never doubt that he will stand with our friends and stand up to our adversaries,” Powell said. “He will restore America’s leadership in the world and restore the alliances we need to address the dangers that threaten our nation.”
As if the message wasn’t clear enough, the DNC followed up with a short video retrospective about the cross-aisle friendship between Biden and the late Republican Sen. John McCain.
It’s not all that surprising that some George W. Bush-era Republicans have crossed over to Biden’s side this time around: Trump’s victory in the 2016 Republican primary was a repudiation of the Bush-era of Republican politics—a time when Powell and McCain were key players in national politics—and the ill-advised, intractable wars that were launched during it. The Trump era has caused many problems for the Republican Party and for America as a whole, but one of the few good things to come of the last four years has been the exile of the neoconservatives to the political wilderness. [A very partial and incomplete “exile”.]
And yet, Trump’s victory over the architects of America’s early 2000s foreign policy disasters seems hollow. He largely failed to follow through on the mandate he was handed by the voters who chose him over his more interventionist opponents in both the Republican primary and the general election.
It’s true that Trump hasn’t launched any new wars. [Actually, that’s not true, but they were brief.] But the number of drone strikes conducted by the U.S. military has risen under his watch. He sent more troops into Afghanistan and is only now drawing those levels back down to where they were when he took office. In a memorable interview with Axios‘s Jonathan Swan a few weeks ago, Trump could offer few specifics about when he would finish off a long-planned withdrawal from America’s longest war. When pressed to say how many troops would remain in Afghanistan on Election Day, Trump said “probably anywhere from four [thousand] to 5,000.”
Instead of bringing the troops home, he’s merely shuffled them around the Middle East with little apparent purpose other than occasionally suggesting that America ought to seize the region’s oil supply.
Trump’s fans say he has reoriented huge amounts of America’s foreign policy, but how much of that is beneficial or lasting? Yes, Trump has picked some silly fights with European leaders and nudged them to contribute a larger share toward NATO.
But everywhere else, Trump has squandered this opportunity. His confrontation with China has imposed millions of dollars of new taxes on American consumers and businesses, failed to produce meaningful changes in U.S.-China trade policy, and potentially set the world’s two biggest economies on course for a new cold war. Surely there must be a more skillful—or at least a less economically damaging way—to oppose China’s illiberal behavior at home and abroad. If only Trump hadn’t alienated the very allies that might make a different approach possible.
Anyone who wants to see America take a less militant approach to the world’s problems shouldn’t be cheering for neocons to build a new nest within the Democratic Party. And the fact that Trump, who has at times seemed legitimately appalled by some of the horrors of war, wasted four years by failing to undo the mistakes Powell and his friends made is a tragedy.
Source: Reason
Anyone supporting the return of the neocon warmonger criminal faction should have their head examined!
Neocons and Dems, both agents of SATAN!
Great and trustworthy team they are!
The neocons should have all faced a firing squad.
Starting with Colon Powell and wormy Bill Kristol and Co.
Yeah Blair, you too..
Add that lesbo witch on Flox News Dana Perino to the list. And Frum, Wolfowitz etc
Save them for the bounty hunters..
It’s it funny that the hawks are not satisfied with Trump. A man who has increased aggression against Iran, Yemen, Cuba, Venezuela, Russia, Syria, and started a Cold War w/China? They are sad that he didn’t actually start a hot war w/Iran. This shows you how demented they are.
It’s not Trump doing all this, Chris, it’s the Trotskyists aka neocons – along with Fat-face Pompous – who have increased aggression against Iran. Unfortunately, Trump’s a puppet. I was hoping he’d gather up some courage and clean up the White House of those traitors and replaced them with real Patriots.
Perhaps, after he wins re-election, he’ll have more wiggle room to do what’s right for America. There again, the Trotskyists – along with ANTIFA and Black Lives Matter – will kick up such a storm nationwide, that Trump will be too busy putting down all of the riots that will happen, should he win.
Trump is the savior of the people
All these Bush scum shall be locked forever
this fascist covered up atrocities in Vietnam—Calley was celebrated for his atrocities—amerikans so loved the nazis that they imported nazi scientists to produce their atom bomb
but amerikans continue to believe there are distinction between the GOP and dems…2 parties narcotized w cocaine and marijuana
If the USA were a real country and not a Zionist plantation, Powell would have been hung as a war criminal years ago.
He would have had to wait in line behind every president he has ever known.
Will the Democrats wake up? Unlikely.
They are sleeping in the same communal barracks with the Republicans.
I’ll tell you something, given a choice between a Ripupthepublican and a Daymockrat I’ll choose the Ripupthepublican. They are merely vile. The Daymockrats are not just vile but hypocrites to the chromosome.
Powell is a contemptible person. He went before the UNSC and said that there were WMD’s in Iraq. Colin Powell LIED–and he knew he was lying at the time.
What else would you expect of any competent apparatchik?
Competence.
In what way was he being incompetent by doing as he was told?
They are all satanist
By being so unbelievable that he totally failed in his stated purpose: to lie the UNSC into green lighting the pre-planned invasion of Iraq.
yes but to trumps defense… he was only following orders.
That didn’t work in Nuremberg.
only for the germans taken there, by the jews and their stooges. So….. you think there is a justice system, that see all equally and judge all equally.
Seriously?
Jews always the victim
It worked best for the Nazi officers swept up in Operation Paperclip.
And the Japanese medical experimenters from Unit 731 who got jobs in Amerikastani universities for handing over their data on the medical experiments they performed on Chinese people. Medical experiments that were so sadistic that the Nazis looked benign in comparison.
All of the surviving members of Team Bush should join Biden on his junket to the World Court to stand for the indictments there for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Proof that there are NOT two political parties in the US with different policy approaches. There is only ONE party in the US controlled almost completely by Big Money.
And ignorant Americans will continue to support both of them until succession sets in.
Jews Jesuits Freemasons are all that’s wrong
amerikan liberals more fascist than conservatives—trump isn’t fascist and racist enough for them…they prefer fascists/racists –sanders, Obama, etc
Colon Bowell, the over-rated minority darling of the Zio-media, has always been an Uncle Tom for his NeoCon handlers. No story here. The guy is irrelevant.
The problem, when you get right down to it, is not Biden or Trump. The REAL problem is the so-called Deep State. These are the people and agencies that stay pretty much the same no matter which Party is in the White House.