Colin Powell... What's Going On?
MSNBC's Joe Scarborough: "Clearly, Powell is one of the most admired men in America, a soldier who served this country well. He deserves much of that acclaim. But when it comes to high-level policy, more often than not, Powell gets it wrong."

The following is the entire Colin Powell segment from Scarborough's April 23 show "Scarborough Country":

SCARBOROUGH (voice-over): Senate hearings on the appointment of Secretary of State Colin Powell sounded more like a coronation than a confirmation.

SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: This is one of those easy days.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can imagine no better qualified person to serve.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A very wise, wise choice.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MS), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Extraordinarily proud to vote for you, as we will.

SCARBOROUGH: Clearly, Powell is one of the most admired men in America, a soldier who served this country well. He deserves much of that acclaim. But when it comes to high-level policy, more often than not, Powell gets it wrong.

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: We believe that the resolution that has been put forward for action by this council is appropriate and, in the very near future, we should bring it before this council for a vote.

SCARBOROUGH: Sorry, Mr. Secretary. You never did get that second resolution. After forcing administration hawks to consult the U.N., you led us directly into the trap set by the axis of weasels.

After President Bush sidestepped the resulting P.R. disaster, Powell was charged with getting basing rights from Turkey. The result? The 4th Infantry Division sat out the war in sunny Texas, but Powell rarely takes the blame for his blunders. Remember this brave proclamation from the first President Bush?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE H.W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This will not stand, this aggression against Kuwait.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCARBOROUGH: If Powell had his way, Saddam’s aggression would have stood. Powell resisted using force to liberate Kuwait, then soaked up the media’s acclaim for Desert Storm.

Since September 11, media elites have been saying that the White House is losing the war for the Arab hearts and minds. Whose job is that? The State Department’s, led by Secretary Powell. Of course, it’s just a lot more fun for “The New York Times” to blame Don Rumsfeld.

Powell now says he’s planning a trip to Syria, which prompted this observation from former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: The concept of the American secretary of state going to Damascus to meet with a terrorist-supporting, secret-police-wielding dictator is ludicrous. This is a time for America to demand changes in Damascus before a visit is even considered.

SCARBOROUGH: On September 10, 2001, “TIME” magazine’s cover asked, “Where have you gone, Colin Powell?” suggesting he was the lone moderate marginalized by an administration filled with nuts. He may simply be a misguided idealist in a world best run by realists like George Bush and the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCARBOROUGH: With us in Minneapolis is Ramesh Ponnuru. He’s the senior editor for “The National Review Online,” whose latest column calls Mr. Powell the teflon secretary.
Thanks for being with us, Ramesh.

And let’s start by asking a simple question. Now, Colin Powell opposed the liberation of Kuwait in 1991, didn’t want to use troops there; of course, Bosnia in 1997, opposed that liberation also; of course, in 2003, opposed initially sending troops in to liberate Iraq. So how does he get away with this and still continue to bask in the glow of all of these victories?

RAMESH PONNURU, SR. EDITOR, “NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, and not only that-all those things are perfectly true-but it’s also the case that Secretary of State Powell originally was opposed to overthrowing the Taliban after September 11, after President Bush had articulated that as a goal of the administration.

All I can say is that Colin Powell has been better at burnishing his reputation inside Washington than he has been at increasing the United States’ reputation overseas.

SCARBOROUGH: Ramesh, since 1991, when all this has happened, it always seems like Colin Powell was sort of winking to “The New York Times” editorial boards and also other East Coast elites by saying: Listen, listen, I’m trying to hold these crazy Republicans back. But I may not be able to stop them.

And then, of course, when he knows that war is inevitable, he’ll go ahead and get on that side because he has no other choice. Is that your read also?

PONNURU: Well, it is certainly the case that the media adulates Powell and treats him as the grownup among the hotheads, the only voice of sanity in the administration. And he would be less than human if he didn’t enjoy that coverage. And it does appear that he seeks to shape that coverage, as many figures in Washington do.

I think that Powell can be a very effective and powerful spokesman for the administration. And he has been at various points during the Iraq crisis. The trouble is that he has so rarely been in step with the administration and his judgment on foreign policy matters has been so frequently just erroneous.

SCARBOROUGH: Yes, well, Ramesh, I want to read you one of your quotes from your column where you say, Colin Powell “is where he is today because of his charisma, his sterling personal qualities, and his genius for playing the Washington game. But he’s been more successful in bolstering his position in Washington than bolstering the position of America in the world.” And yet Powell is also popular overseas. Why doesn’t that personal popularity seem to translate to diplomatic success for America?

PONNURU: Well, I think that this is-there’s a personal failure, if I will, of the secretary of state to translate his popularity abroad into support for American positions, because he really hasn’t been active going overseas and making the case for U.S. policy.
But that’s just part of the larger problem, which is the State Department’s failure to advocate forcefully for American policy overseas. And a large part of that, with both Powell and the department as a whole, is that they don’t support the administration policy. Their heart is not in it.

SCARBOROUGH: Yes, and that’s obviously what Newt Gingrich was talking about yesterday.

I want to show you some poll numbers right now on Colin Powell. A whopping 83 percent of Americans say they think the secretary is doing a good job as the president’s chief diplomat. Let me ask you, Ramesh, do you think he’s got 83 percent of the support inside the White House after taking them to the U.N.?

PONNURU: Well, a lot of people in the administration off the record will say very negative things about Colin Powell.

SCARBOROUGH: All right, Ramesh, thanks for being with us tonight.

PONNURU: Thanks for having me.