Aide: Powell, Bush Team At Odds

[Desperadoe]

One of Washington's worst-kept secrets is out of the bag. Secretary of State Colin Powell and his deputy sometimes disagreed with President Bush's other advisers and sometimes went public with their views to try to influence him.

The deputy, Richard Armitage, who is close to Powell and will leave with him at the end of Mr. Bush's first term, described the process of using the "bully pulpit" in an interview with National Public Radio's Morning Edition on Thursday.

"Differences of opinion are something you as a citizen and I as a citizen should value in your government," Armitage said. "You really want it."

Powell and Armitage, whose friendship was forged decades ago, share foreign policy views that are distinctly more moderate than those of Mr. Bush and other key presidential advisers. <snip>

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/01/14/politics/main667070.shtml

[anakie]

1. doesn't matter anymore

Powell is yesterday's man

[drdtroit]

2. Too little, too late. n/t

[Robbien]

3. Just face saving. Every time we turn around Powell is spewing the BushCo

line of bull.

Face not saved.

Bush has no concept of anything but being rich and powerful. Powell at least at first appeared to know the score, but was a water carrier anyway.

[Webster Green]

4. Rats

Sinking ship

[stepnw1f]

5. Perception, Perception (nt)

[cliss]

6. Color me not impressed.

"More moderate" here is a loose phrase. Maybe moderately principled would be better.

[Vidar]

7. Oh, well.... nt

[leesa]

8. Who cares? They are ALL treasonous war criminals.

Off to the Hague with every one of them.

[gratuitous]

9. You know I thought something was up

The way Powell went before the UN, put on that long presentation with the Powerpoint slides, the drawings, the little vial, everything. When he intoned that Saddam's possession of horrible weapons, weapons of mass destruction that could snuff out humanity in an instant, were not simply assertions, but verifiable facts based on solid intelligence and reliable sources, well, you know, I just KNEW he and the Bush team were totally at odds with one another.

And the way Powell came out between that speech at the UN in January 2002 and got on every program imaginable, and reinforced the company line, there was just sort of a twinkle in his eye (you'd have to know him like a frat brother to see it, admittedly) that said he was just sort of playing a role, he really didn't believe a word of any of it.

You know something, Mr. Powell? Thanks a lot. Thanks a lot for nothing. No, that's not quite right. Thanks for 1,300 dead soldiers in Iraq. Thanks for 100,000 civilian dead and injured. Thanks for a half trillion dollar deficit last year. Thank you very much. Really. From the heart, you lying sack of shit. Don't come mooching around now looking for redemption and forgiveness. You were the fireman on the catastrophic success express, shoveling the coal right into the firebox.

Burn, Mr. Powell. Burn in Hell.