US analysts divided over Powell's endorsement of Obama

Sridhar Krishnaswami

Washington, Oct 20 (PTI) The endorsement of Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama by the former Secretary of
State and Republican Colin Powell has brought mixed reactions
from Republicans and Democrats but analysts believe that it is
still too early to weigh in the advantages of the backing.

"I think General Powell is wrong, respectfully. I
believe he has come to this conclusion, you can see, in an
agonized way, because he likes both men very much," said the
former Mayor of New York and former Republican Presidential
candidate Rudy Giuliani on CNN's "Late Edition".

"I know he's a close friend of John McCain's. He has
great respect for Barack Obama. Colin Powell's opinion is one
I always respect. I have tremendous admiration for him. But
even when you have tremendous admiration for someone, you can
sometimes believe that their opinion is wrong and your opinion
is right," he said.

While, hailing Powell's decision to endorse Barack
Obama, Democratic Congressman from Alabama, Artur Davis, said:
"It's very significant because Colin Powell sounds like a lot
of good, thoughtful people in his country who respect both
Barack Obama and John McCain, who think a lot of John McCain's
service, a lot of his abilities and a lot of his record in the
Senate, but who think on the key questions facing the country
today that Obama's better."

Rubbishing the allegations of Powell's backing to Obama
as a mark of racial solidarity, Davis said: "If General Powell
were primarily concerned about racial solidarity, he frankly
would never have chosen to be a Republican in a party where
there is a very thin black presence. General Powell has a
consistent history of doing what he thinks is right and what
he thinks is in his country's interest. He has always put his
country first, as some would say."

"So I think General Powell's endorsement is an
important event in this campaign because Colin Powell is one
of the most venerated figures in American public life. He made
some mistakes in judgment when he served as secretary of
state, and he has owned up to a lot of those mistakes in
judgment. I think this is a very helpful event and is part of
the momentum that Senator Obama is gathering around him," the
law maker
added.

Endorsing fellow black-American and Democrat Barack
Obama as the next US President, Powell had yesterday cited his
"ability to inspire" the nation at a time of crisis for the
decision.

"He (Obama) has both style and substance. I think he is
a transformational figure," Powell, a Republican, had said on
NBC's "Meet the Press."

"Obama displayed a steadiness. Showed intellectual vigor.
He has a definitive way of doing business that will do us
well," Powell said ahead of the November 4 poll yesterday
after publicly endorsing Illinois Democrat.

Powell, a retired US general and a Republican, was
once seen as a possible presidential candidate himself.


He had also Criticised McCain's approach towards
American economic crisis and questioned the 71-year-old
Republican presidential nominee John McCain's judgement in
picking Sarah Palin as his running mate.