Colin Powell Crushes Cheney, Limbaugh In Favorability Ratings (VIDEO)

As Colin Powell battles Dick Cheney and Rush Limbaugh for the future of the Republican party, a new CNN poll has come out that shows Powell enjoys more support from the American public than either Cheney or Limbaugh, and by wide margins. A whopping 70 percent of the public has a favorable approval rating of Powell, while Limbaugh and Cheney hover at 30 and 37 percent, respectively.

Read the full story here.

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Watch CNN's video report from Bill Schneider below.

Comments

[Shayrae]

Why would anyone with principles want to be associated the Rush and Cheney's ranting, raging, angry, impotent version of the Republican party? They are toxic to themselves, fortunately for us.

[leonel]

PUBLIC THERAPY SESSIONS WORKING FOR CHENEY, NOW TELLS KUDLOW TALK SHOW THAT IT IS OK FOR POWELL TO BE A REPUBLICAN.

Reconciliation will take indefinitely long period. Remember Nixon, after being driven from office, he wrote books and eventually was forgiven. The American public is very forgiving. Another phenomena is to see that foreign leaders can also make come backs. Examples include Pakistan's Sharif who is now permitted to run for office after being sent into exile. Israel's Netanyahu made a comeback. Iran elections may bring back a moderate.

Biggest impact of Cheney appearances is for foreign countries to see that the US is very flexible with politicians who fall from grace. As distasteful as it seems to persons who know details of all the misdeeds of Cheney, most people need to see politics not a death sport but about patient improvement of countries. The least democratic countries need to be able to get beyond just punishing politicians who mess things up and improve their court systems and other ways of fighting corruption. Answer to Bush and Cheney corruption of presidential powers through secrecy and misusing lawyers has to be to develop improvements in laws so they are clearer.

[ThankGodhesgone]

Hey Dickei kcus it.

[nogornc]

I really think Cheney is crazy, deluded. I think the GOP threw in their lot with him, now realize he is cuckoo and don't know what to do. i seriously think Tom Ridge is their only hope and our only threat.

[Shayrae]

Well said.

[saysay]

Mr Powell's only mistake was listening to and trusting his commander in chief as good soldiers do not trying to second guess if he doesn't have to their credibility and honesty!........and what loud voice were you making at the time.....or should i say what bar were you in or mall or movie theater or restaurant........

[youwildman]

You've two chicken hawks that never served a day in their life warmongering while a decorated, loyal and patient soldier is ready to "out them" for lying to congress and the American people. Powell has actually won often in his life--including The Persian Gulf War. There was a reason that Schwarzkopf and Powell and even Bush Sr. railed against a march to Baghdad back then and we see those reasons in spades these last eight years. The only question about Powell's loyalty to the American people comes from if he ever "obeyed an unlawful order." I am sure everything he was told was couched in terms that ruled out his option to disobey a direct command. Watch The Young Turks interview of Powell's right hand man through peace and war, Larry Wilkerson. They are letting Cheney dig his own grave and when any kind of a truth commission occurs, an awful lot of it will come out. IMHO, I think Pelosi is baiting them so that they initiate the commission or special prosecutor or whatever, so that it won't look like the Dems are doing it. As long as there is "reference ability" that allows crimes or ethics violations discovered to be referred to the proper authority with prosecutorial powers, it's all good.

[Rule Of Law]

And Jack the Ripper would probably come in ahead of Hit.ler and Sta.lin.

So your point is, what?

[sagebrush5]

You honestly don't know what the point is? Cheney and Limbaugh support torture. Real America does not support torture. Powell is a disciplined leader who abides by the Geneva conventions. Cheney and Limbaugh LURK in very dark places with exo-skeletoned critters.

[Rule Of Law]

Powell was there when all those programs were created. He is far from innocent,

[RightToThePoint]

Sorry, but i don't believe he's more popular than Rush and Cheney. Maybe with the Democrat crowd, but he's no longer welcomed into the Republican camp.

[ContraEgoiste]

"the Nile" not just a river in Egypt anymore.

[ATLiberal]

I believe scientific polls of all Americans are what these numbers are based on. Not select people. If you only hang out with like minded people, you think everyone belives the same thing you do. Broaden your horizons and it might help you to understand these poll numbers.

[the964kid]

I love how republicans just dismiss polls whenever they disagree with them. What this poll is really saying is that Powell is vastly more popular with independents then your boys Cheney and Rush. Oh and independents determine election results - just ask John McCain. You probably also didn't accept any of the polls last year indicating that McCain/Palin was going to lose badly prior to Nov 4th.

[dutchess2]

I do not understand, but don't care either, that the republican party is down to 17% - white supremacists, intolerant, insulting, and nasty.

They have campaigned against blacks, females, the poor, hispanics, veterans, blue collar workers, gays, lesbians, democrats, progressives, liberals, and anyone that doesn't go to their church.

I don't know where they're going, or why they can't change their ways, just as well, who wuld trust them now if they changed?

[Querent]

So that's one thing he's got going for him.

[IndependentTogether]

considering the fact that only ~20% of Americans identify themselves as Republican, Powell's 70% is well within the margins. I know... it's math and logic... head hurt...

[slowtono]

Powell was brought into the American living room during the gulf war, under Bush Senior. Somehow American news dupes were able to align him with the republican party because of this position. He has never openly announced his position, but obviously he thinks Bidden greater than Palin, and that black trumps military education and experience. Powell is a Democrat!! He was unfaithful to his comrade of Academic uniform. Would leave men on the ground rather than take a risk. He is a Democrat in boots.

[Kencleanersystem]

Stoo Pid.

[ContraEgoiste]

He does justice to his handle. heh

[ContraEgoiste]

"...obviously he thinks Bidden greater than Palin..." - slow

Who, with more than 2 firing neurons, doesn't?? Heck, not even on the same planet as far as education or intelligence.

"...black trumps military education and experience..."

Where to start. heh.

a) Yes, a Harvard education does trump a military one by droves.

b) McSame graduated 4th from last and only got in because his dad.

c) His experience was loosing 4 expensive planes who in more capable hands may have saved lives, and then getting capture and being a prisoner of war for the rest of his tours. How does that qualify him to be more than a security guard or so.

d) This was the man who said "I don't know much about the economy" and "the fundamentals of the economy are sound". Yup, he would have been great given our economic disaster caused by the cons themselves. heh

"...black trumps..."

Clearly states where your mind and affiliations are.

[Agent420]

Don't forget McSongbird.

[Querent]

Conservative logic: Powell is not foaming at the mouth crazy, therefore he must not be a Republican.

[dutchess2]

Those who don't know their history are destined to repeat it.

Colin Powel was a VietNam era soldier who came up through the ranks the hard way. A kid of the projects, got his education the hard way too.

He has always been a popular personality, refused to run for office when it seemed most likely he would win... has been doing a LOT to work with kids in the projects... much more like Obama than anyone else.

I don't think John McCain had a clue about what change most Americans wanted to see, and
got prodded into picking Sarah Palin by the religious right... She turned out to be as dume as a box of rocks with baggage besides.

No one is surprised they lost.

[mpell]

Why, then, did he leave his honor behind and lie before the assembled nations of the world about Iraq? He sent to unnecessary death the very soldiers he claims to love so much. The other two are unutterably deficient human beings (actually, I cannot think of a description low enough), but Powell is no hero either. He was lying and he knew it. He belongs with the other war criminals of the Bush era--in prison.

[truenortherner]

Gee, at first I thought you were going to attack Powell, but then you say he is a democrat (a democrat in boots no less).
I didn't realize you respected him so much.

[OliverTwist]

On the other hand Powell supported the use of torture:

"He argued that when "facing the possibility of a 9/11, you had to give some -- some flexibility to the CIA," noting that these methods were stopped under the Bush administration.

"It's easy now in the cold light of day to look back and say, you shouldn't have done any of that," Powell said.

"But as Mr. Cheney has said very, very often, as has President Bush and all of us, if we had another attack like 9/11, say on 9/11 a year later, nobody would have forgiven us for not doing everything we could." "

I hate to say this, but his last comment shows that there is good reason why we need to convict and execute those who carried out torture. They need to understand that nobody will forgive them for doing what they shouldn't have done.

If we don't do that then torture will continue.

As a starter we need a statement from President Obama that anyone carrying out torture during his tenure will be charged with war crimes and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. That is a statement of principle that President Obama has not yet made.

Courage seems to be in short supply these days - at least for Generals, Congressonal Representatives and Senators, Judges and Presidents.

Too bad.

[obamaluv]

Why is he a republican. He walks and talks like a democrat, votes like a democrat why not just cross the isle and be done with it.

[Ellyllon]

I suspect a lot of Republicans can't let go of the past. The FAR past - the Lincoln past. And I suspect they believe in small gov't, & if Republicans in ANY way stuck to that concept, they might have more traction. But they don't - that became blatantly obvious during Bush's reign. Obama intends to use gov't - & because he's honest, I trust what he'll do. Bush & co pretended to favor 'small,' & we became a giant blister of govt invasion, into privacy, & everywhere. But I'd like to see Powell, and Snowe, & Collins even, at least become Independent as voices against the Palin/Limb­augh/Rove/­Cheney party, which may be the worst insult to Lincoln's Repubicans imaginable.

[slowtono]

To late. Why bother with such rhetoric. Powell was asked to run for president, but instead he turned the country over to Bush Jr. Powell is a die hard democrat KA.

[ContraEgoiste]

ummm, cons and misguided people turned the country to GW. So, when did you scraped off the GW sticker of your car?? heh

[snakeman]

Cheney and limbo are war mongers and BOTH are draft dodgers. I was drafted and I went to VIETNAM and served. These cowards want other people to fight but are afraid to risk their lives for this country. why should any real patriot listen to THEM!

[Icantbelieveher]

Come on -- Rush had a boil on his b u t t! You can't expect him to fight with a boil on his b u t t!

[Ellyllon]

And in fairness, I'm sure the other soldiers were happier without him there.

[freethinkergirl]

And on his brains.

[dartagnan]

Actually more like a pimple ...

[kittyarmy]

It wasn't a boil - it's a plug. It keeps all the hot air in.

[caseyblab]

It still matters to most Americans that Rush and Cheney are chickenhawks- if they didn't talk so much about what everyone else should do, it would not be so irksome. 5 deferments for Cheney and the other one had a boil- not exactly the stuff of legend. Powell is Einstein next to those two.

[rockyb26]

endorsing president Obama was in the country's best interest, that's what makes him an honorable American. as he said he voted repub for 20 years prior. clearly he didn't agree with mccain's judgment in picking palin, he knew it was too risky to have her a heartbeat away from the oval office. plus he recognized pres Obama as an intelligent, competent, "transformative figure" that could take America in a new direction.

i only wish the rest of the GOP could be this patriotic

[wdw505]

laughing to vote for the most liberal presidential candidate ever......yes that will happen tell you what hold your breath in anticipation

[ContraEgoiste]

hmmm, seems most of the country already gave their answer as to who was better for the country back in Nov. 2008.