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Colin Powell .. it's hard to admit you were wrong no matter how subtle you say it!

Big Dog

Large Member
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Need to watch the video that accompanies the article!

Colin concerned about the Obama agenda!

Powell Expresses Concerns Over Obama’s Packed Agenda

By Kate Phillips
In an interview to be broadcast this Sunday on CNN, former secretary of state Colin Powell said that he had recently cautioned Obama administration officials about taking on way too many costly initiatives that were causing the nation’s debt to spiral.

Prompted by a clip from his 1996 speech to the Republican National Convention, in which he promoted limited government and limited taxes, Mr. Powell — who broke with his party and endorsed President Obama in the election last year — offered his concerns about the new administration’s multi-pronged agenda in an economic downturn.

John King, the host of CNN’s “State of the Union” began the questioning by listing several of the issues on the president’s plate: “But has the president of the United States, in that regard, when it comes to financial institution bailouts, General Motors bailouts, spending by government, whether it’s health care reform, whether it’s the debate now about climate change, when it comes to spending and the reach and role of government, does President Obama meet the test Colin Powell laid out in ‘96?”

According to excerpts released in advance by CNN, Mr. Powell replied, in part, that he was no longer fond of slogans like “limited government.” But he added, “The right answer is, give me a government that works. Keep it as small as possible. Keep the tax burden on the American people as small as possible, but at the same time, have government that is solving the problems of the people.”

But Mr. Powell, the retired chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the first President Bush and former President Clinton as well as Secretary of State during part of the second President Bush’s two terms, then moved on to the current problems facing Mr. Obama’s administration:
Now, I think one of the challenges that President Obama has now is that he’s got so many things on the table, and these are issues that the American people find important, health care and so many other issues. But I think one of the cautions that has to be given to the president — and I’ve talked to some of his people about this — is that you can’t have so many things on the table that you can’t absorb it all. And we can’t pay for it all.

And I never would have believed that we would have budgets that are running into the multi-trillions of dollars, and we are amassing a huge, huge national debt that, if we don’t pay for in our lifetime, our kids and grandkids and great grandchildren will have to pay for it.

So, I think the president, as he moves forward with his initiatives has to start really taking a very, very hard look at what the cost of all this is. And, how much additional bureaucracy and will it be effective bureaucracy be needed to make all of this happen?
Although he said he was on good terms with Mr. Obama and kept in touch with him, Mr. Powell’s cautionary criticisms offer another voice to both critics and supporters expressing worries about the expense associated with overhauling the health care system, one of the president’s top priorities. Congressional lawmakers return to Capitol Hill next week, under pressure to control the projected costs for legislation emanating in particular from the Senate Finance Committee.

At a town-hall meeting earlier this week, Mr. Obama tried to present his plans as cost-saving measures that would ultimately reduce the rising costs of health care as well as cover those who are uninsured.

The Times’s Jackie Calmes laid out the issues facing both the Finance panel and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which released a revised draft bill this week that included lower cost estimates under its proposal.

Asked if he were worried about the costliness of such programs going forward, Mr. Powell said instead that he was “a little concerned.” He added: “I’m concerned at the number of programs that are being presented, the bills associated with these programs and the additional government that will be needed to execute them.”
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Powell as much as admitted that he was supporting Obama because of his race. Now we have a classic case of buyers remorse. It appears that Powell wishes that his support wasn't just skin deep but that is exactly what it turned out to be. How disappointing. Both in how I feel about Powell and in how Powell feels about Obama.
 

RedRocker

Active member
So how can a guy that made so much sense in 96 support a Marxist?
As far as government "solving" our problems, every one of our "problems"
can be traced back to the federal government. Housing, health care, you name
it, they screwed it up.
 
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