Colin Powell, a retired general who served under President George W. Bush, is one of the very many retired top military officials who finds Trump’s methods irrational—describing his behavior as “drifting away” from the Constitution. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
In the “State of the Union,” Powell told a CNN reporter, “We have a Constitution. And we have to follow that Constitution. And the President has drifted away from it,” he said when addressing Trump’s handling of the protests going on.
International Business Times reported that Powell cited Trump as a danger to democracy “whose lies and insults have diminished America in the eyes of the world.”⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
In his address, Powell, who was also the first Black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, publicly endorsed Joe Biden. The two are very close, and Biden is now the candidate he will be voting for in the 2020 election.
Trump, known for his impulsive and candid responses, took to his favorite platform, Twitter, to address Powell in a series of tweets.
Colin Powell, a real stiff who was very responsible for getting us into the disastrous Middle East Wars, just announced he will be voting for another stiff, Sleepy Joe Biden. Didn’t Powell say that Iraq had “weapons of mass destruction?” They didn’t, but off we went to WAR!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 7, 2020
“Colin Powell, a real stiff who was very responsible for getting us into the disastrous Middle East Wars, just announced he will be voting for another stiff, Sleepy Joe Biden,” The President tweeted. “Didn’t Powell say that Iraq had ‘weapons of mass destruction?’ They didn’t, but off we went to WAR!”
Trump continued by tweeting: “Somebody please tell highly overrated Colin Powell that I will have gotten almost 300 Federal Judges approved (a record), Two Great Supreme Court Justices, rebuilt our once depleted Military, Choice for Vets, Biggest Ever Tax & Regulation Cuts, Saved Healthcare & 2A, & much more!”
Somebody please tell highly overrated Colin Powell that I will have gotten almost 300 Federal Judges approved (a record), Two Great Supreme Court Justices, rebuilt our once depleted Military, Choice for Vets, Biggest Ever Tax & Regulation Cuts, Saved Healthcare & 2A, & much more!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 7, 2020
Nonetheless, Powell believes we are “in a turning point” and is proud of the wide number of former generals, admirals, and diplomats who have openly criticized Trump’s response to the protests.
In his lifetime, this is the most massive protest movement he has witnessed.
“What we have to do now is reach out to the whole people, watch these demonstrations, watch these protests, and rather than curse them, embrace them to see what it is we have to do to get out of the situation that we find ourselves in now,” he told CNN. “We’re America, we’re Americans, we can do this. We have the ability to do it, and we ought to do it. Make America not just great, but strong and great for all Americans, not just a couple.”
