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04-29-2008, 08:34 PM
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Like many other Americans, Colin Powell insisted Monday that he hasn’t made up his mind who will get his vote for president in November.
The former Army general and secretary of state knows the candidates and has spoken to them, but said he is still evaluating Sens. Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton and John McCain.
“I’ve said nice things about all of them,” he said. “They’re all friends of mine. I’m watching all of them and I’m analyzing them. I think as a citizen my responsibility is to try to make a judgment as to which of the three candidates would bring to America the vision for America that I think it needs for the 21st century.”
Powell said he would advise each of the candidates that the next president must be willing to speak to everyone in the world, including enemies of the United States.
He particularly noted the reluctance of recent administrations to engage Iran and Syria on issues in the Middle East. Both nations have been accused of supporting insurgents working to undermine the Iraqi government and keep the region unstable.
Powell was in Kansas City to be honored by the U.S. Army Command and General Staff Foundation for his service. The foundation has created a distinguished lecture series at the school at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., in his honor.
The former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state graduated from the college in 1968 and was deputy commandant of the college from August 1982 to June 1983, when he was named senior military assistant to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger.
The foundation is a private organization of retired officers who support the command college through various activities and financial contributions. Powell was scheduled on Tuesday to give a private lecture to the current class of majors and international officers attending the college.
He said much is being asked of the military, its young officers and their families as the fight continues in Iraq and Afghanistan. Powell said experience shows that troops must be ready for that next call or deployment.
While there are more than 140,000 troops in Iraq and 30,000 in Afghanistan, Powell said many forget about the forces deployed to South Korea and the Balkans.
“The point I’ll make to them is we don’t know what the future holds. I never heard of Panama or Desert Shield or Desert Storm or anything like it when I was at Leavenworth,” Powell said. “There is a crisis waiting for them that hasn’t been named yet, and they’ve gotta be ready for it.”
Powell said the nation’s ability to fight the next war or respond to the next crisis depends on where the incident occurred and its scope. He said the military was being stretched and a lot was being asked of the all-volunteer force at a time when the entire country isn’t committed to war.
“I think it would be hard to respond to another crisis if it was like these two,” Powell said.
He acknowledged the issue of some junior officers who are leaving the military early in their careers because of frequent deployments. But he said those who stay are committed to seeing the mission through.
“They are, for the most, career officers. And they’re professionals. This is what we do. We serve the nation,” he said.
Seventy percent of the officers attending the Command and General Staff College have been deployed at least once to Iraq or Afghanistan, a figure that officials expect to grow to almost 90 percent the next few years.
“But there is a limit to how much you can ask of them when most of the rest of the nation is not paying the price,” Powell said. “They will continue to pay the price, but sooner or later they have to turn their attention to their families. That’s why I think there is a finite limit to how many times you can recycle the same force.”
Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/04/ap_colin_powell_042808/
The former Army general and secretary of state knows the candidates and has spoken to them, but said he is still evaluating Sens. Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton and John McCain.
“I’ve said nice things about all of them,” he said. “They’re all friends of mine. I’m watching all of them and I’m analyzing them. I think as a citizen my responsibility is to try to make a judgment as to which of the three candidates would bring to America the vision for America that I think it needs for the 21st century.”
Powell said he would advise each of the candidates that the next president must be willing to speak to everyone in the world, including enemies of the United States.
He particularly noted the reluctance of recent administrations to engage Iran and Syria on issues in the Middle East. Both nations have been accused of supporting insurgents working to undermine the Iraqi government and keep the region unstable.
Powell was in Kansas City to be honored by the U.S. Army Command and General Staff Foundation for his service. The foundation has created a distinguished lecture series at the school at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., in his honor.
The former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state graduated from the college in 1968 and was deputy commandant of the college from August 1982 to June 1983, when he was named senior military assistant to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger.
The foundation is a private organization of retired officers who support the command college through various activities and financial contributions. Powell was scheduled on Tuesday to give a private lecture to the current class of majors and international officers attending the college.
He said much is being asked of the military, its young officers and their families as the fight continues in Iraq and Afghanistan. Powell said experience shows that troops must be ready for that next call or deployment.
While there are more than 140,000 troops in Iraq and 30,000 in Afghanistan, Powell said many forget about the forces deployed to South Korea and the Balkans.
“The point I’ll make to them is we don’t know what the future holds. I never heard of Panama or Desert Shield or Desert Storm or anything like it when I was at Leavenworth,” Powell said. “There is a crisis waiting for them that hasn’t been named yet, and they’ve gotta be ready for it.”
Powell said the nation’s ability to fight the next war or respond to the next crisis depends on where the incident occurred and its scope. He said the military was being stretched and a lot was being asked of the all-volunteer force at a time when the entire country isn’t committed to war.
“I think it would be hard to respond to another crisis if it was like these two,” Powell said.
He acknowledged the issue of some junior officers who are leaving the military early in their careers because of frequent deployments. But he said those who stay are committed to seeing the mission through.
“They are, for the most, career officers. And they’re professionals. This is what we do. We serve the nation,” he said.
Seventy percent of the officers attending the Command and General Staff College have been deployed at least once to Iraq or Afghanistan, a figure that officials expect to grow to almost 90 percent the next few years.
“But there is a limit to how much you can ask of them when most of the rest of the nation is not paying the price,” Powell said. “They will continue to pay the price, but sooner or later they have to turn their attention to their families. That’s why I think there is a finite limit to how many times you can recycle the same force.”
Article: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/04/ap_colin_powell_042808/