Nor does an approval rating equate to being popular...

An approval rating is basically an assessment of performance....not an assessment of fame.

Because Powell's approval rating is at 70%, drawing the conclusion that most people view his actions as favorable gives him quite a bit of political clout regardless of whether you see him as respectable, or a traitor, or a poser..or whatever. He still has standing in the political arena even though he was the frontman on deceiving the U.N. about Iraq....that's says a lot more about him than polls.

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Powell has lost all credibility within the republican party.

Powell cannot refer to himself as a moderate republican--when we had a moderate republican as our Presidential candidate--(John McCain). Powell ended up fully supporting & voting for a liberal democrat (Barack Obama).

Therefore, Powell is about as significant as a mosquito on an elephant's ass to the Republican party.

He has clout with the MSM, thats it. No one was asking his opinion of anything until he decided to criticize Cheney. Cheney is the newsmaker, Powel is riding his coattails.

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"To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his father has acquired too much, in order to spare to others who (or whose fathers) have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, "to guarantee to everyone a free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it."

-Thomas Jefferson

An argument can be made that Powell agreed more with Obama than McCain on the Iraq War and other foreign policy..... and he actually made that argument.

To me, that demonstrates loyalty to country over loyalty to party (regardless of whether you agree with him or not).

If you want to believe he voted for Obama because of African-American kinship, it's just unsubstantiated speculation.

The fact that so many Republicans are so quick to throw Powell overboard for supporting Obama illustrates the very reason that the Republican party is shrinking. In fact, it doesn't take that much.....merely vote with the Democrats and you are essentially thrown out of the party.

Zero tolerance for deviation from contrived, ideological rules is what got the Republicans where they are.... If they don't see that as part of their problem, their fate is sealed. Dump the moderates and there's a very small base of support left.

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The world could use more Stan Ovshinsky's

Such posts justify my opinion that your participation here is detrimental to the forum.

He has substantial clout with the public...."We the people" (though you might characterize it as "You the people"). That's what that 70% approval rating says.

If you want say Cheney is making louder noise and getting more attention, you'd be right.....but it's hard to make a case that he has more clout and/or credibility considering his abysmal approval rating.

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The world could use more Stan Ovshinsky's

Someone should introduce you Imperator. The two of you deserve each other.

you can answer the question any time you like.

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"The captain has turned off the `No Dubbing' sign. You are free to speak any language you choose."

Such posts justify my opinion that your participation here is detrimental to the forum.

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"The captain has turned off the `No Dubbing' sign. You are free to speak any language you choose."

I don't agree with that at all. Powell doesn't follow either party, and his opinions about most of the issues of the day are unknown. We all believe we have good reasons for believing as we do, and thus project those beliefs onto Powell. Rush and Cheney don't have that luxury. If Powell were forced to take a stand about such things as environmental regulations, government bailouts, etc., his approval rating would certainly drop.

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“Nations have no permanent friends or allies, they only have permanent interests.” - Lord Palmerston

Well, Powell is still perceived as more as a military man and diplomat than a partisan politician.

You are getting into hypotheticals about his approval rating....his approval rating is his approval rating.


The bottom line is that if Powell says "I'm a Republican" why is there so much resistance to the party accepting that?

-Can one not agree with the Iraq War and still be a Republican?
-Can one not vote selectively for a Democrat on infrequent occasion and remain a Republican?
...

See, like I say, these zero tolerance litmus tests are culling moderates from the ever-shrinking Republican herd. Moderates appear to be no longer welcome. Put another way, the Republican party appears to be radicalizing.

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-Can one agree with the Iraq War and still be a Democrat?
-Can one not vote selectively for a Republican on infrequent occasion and remain a Democrat?


Apparently not; Lieberman was forced out of the party.

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“Nations have no permanent friends or allies, they only have permanent interests.” - Lord Palmerston

IMO, if Powell wants to be a spokesman for a 'different kind of GOP' than Limbaugh/Cheney and the hard right and Religious Right, he should state what his views on issues are and what kinds of directions the party should take.

But, I think the GOP should take heed to what made his decision for him in the last POTUS election, and it is a good and fair point as to what the party should not do and to whom they appeal for proving fitness to lead.

He started out donating to McCain's campaign and changed with certain critical observations. The first was McCain's big fumbling of explaining his understandings and plans regarding the economy. But this last one was the straw breaker--the campaign appeal to the xenophobes and fear mongering driving up the rhetoric, especially the anti-Muslim attacks and smears on Obama that he felt is toxic and dangerous to American cohesiveness, values as well as the safety and security of the US:

YouTube - Colin Powell Discusses His Endorsement of Barack Obama

and he specifically referred to seeing this on Al-Jazeera being beamed to all the Muslim world (at around 3:55 through the 4th minute), including the two nations where US troops are stationed and fighting wars:

YouTube - Misconceptions of Obama fuel Republican campaign - 13 Oct 08

and Michele Bachmann's call on Hardball for McCarthyist witchhunts against Obama, Congress and the citizenry as to whom is 'pro-America' or 'anti-America' (as defined by her and the extreme right wing) and robocalling alleging Obama is a terrorist:

YouTube - McCarthy's back: Bachmann on Hardball

That kind of stuff and those kinds of people in those videos should never be allowed any kind of power and they are detrimental to the country. And if ignorant nail biting pants shitters, racists and/or wingnuts are the ones being sought and accomodated in order to win an election, IMO the ticket deserves to lose with all due speed for the sake of the country's welfare.

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How does your counter-example somehow diffuse or even address my argument?

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Absolutely yes, hey I voted for ron paul and my rep. friends didn’t drum me out, but LBS there is making a statement and , well making a statement where in it becomes harmful to your party. He said he thought Obama a better choice , his explanation was, if you remember lacked substance and was pretty much bright light and hope, hey fine, he can vote for whom ever he wants and if he feels he needs to make that statement fine, let me ask you if he had said he was going to vote for McCain would anyone have given a shit?


And far as his party loyalty ( not that he had an issue with his boss twisting in the wind ala armitage and novak) and yes there is such a thing, does he attend any of the rep. Party or chair functions, sppt any part there of? dies heb talk with Steele? Has he tried? Scine when really, was he ever aa spokesman? I don’t think so, and has not for a while. So he can spout all he wants but doesn’t want to engage uhm hello. He is welcome to get engaged, so why doesn't he?

And there is alo a fundamental difference here this notion that the rep. Party has moved right? Huh how, can some tell me exactly how they have done that? 3 examples will do. Because I can give 2 straight off the bat in which they have moved left 1) a huge drug prescription benefit, 2) spending alike well, pre Obama congress drunken sailors



Oh, and I seem to remember some folks here telling us that Lieberman deserved to be drummed out because he was for the war……( hello Goober, Jason et al!!) so what happened to that?
HEY!!! Why is the dem party engaged in eating its own for sppting the war?

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"The captain has turned off the `No Dubbing' sign. You are free to speak any language you choose."