Original title: Former U.S. Secretary of State Powell passed away and regretted not being able to stop the war
Powell served in the administration of three US presidents, not only breaking the boundaries of race and class, but also crossing the gap between the military and civil systems, becoming the first African-American Secretary of State. But the failure to prevent the United States from launching the Iraq war became a stain on his career that he himself regretted.
Text | Cai Tingyi, reporter of Caijing
The family of former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell announced on social media on October 18 that General Powell, the first African-American Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had passed away at the age of 84 due to complications from new coronary pneumonia.
Powell suffered from multiple myeloma, a type of white blood cell cancer that inhibits the human immune system, so although he had been vaccinated with the new crown vaccine before his death, he could not form an effective immunity.
Although Powell, who was born as a military general, was frequently in and out of the hospital due to illness, his fighting spirit has not changed. He told the American media in mid-July, “I have multiple myeloma and Parkinson’s disease. Other than that, I’m fine.” “Don’t feel sorry for me… I’m 84 years old… I didn’t fight against this. Two diseases were wasted for a day, and I still maintained a good condition.” Before his death, he insisted on driving to the hospital for medicine and examination.
Powell served in the administrations of three US presidents (Reagan, Bush Sr., and Bush Jr.). After his family announced their death, American cross-party people shared their condolences. As far as American politics is concerned, Powell not only broke the boundaries of race and class, but also crossed the gap between the military and civilian systems and became the first African-American Secretary of State.
“Jill and I are deeply saddened by the passing of our dear friend.” The current US President Biden said on social media.
“Laura and I are sad for Powell’s passing.” President Bush said in a statement, “He was loved by the presidents and won the Presidential Freedom Medal twice.”
Democratic President Barack Obama, who received Powell’s cross-party support in 2008, gave a closer look at the gratitude he received from Powell to resolve public doubts during the general election. At that time, Powell stepped up and publicly stated that Obama is not a Muslim but a Christian, but the more important question is, “What if he is a Muslim?… (If) a 7-year-old Muslim American believes that he can be the United States President, what’s the problem?”
The current Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on social media: “General Colin Powell is irreplaceable. He is my best friend and mentor. At this moment, the thought of losing him makes my heart hurt.”
However, many Iraqis are still angry at Powell’s assistance to the Bush administration’s attack on Iraq in 2003. An Iraqi writer and mother told Al Jazeera, “He lied, lied, lied…and we are still trapped in a war that cannot be ended.”
Before his death, Powell regretted that he hadn’t been more active in preventing the war. He repeatedly stated that a lot of intelligence was wrong at the time. “I didn’t lie, I didn’t know the intelligence was wrong, I was (at the time) the Secretary of State, not the intelligence director… But I couldn’t spend a lot of time constantly reflecting, because that couldn’t change anything.” He set up a foundation to assist young people after leaving office. And ethnic minorities to atone for their sins.
The Military Route of Jamaican Immigrants
Powell came from a Jamaican immigrant family in New York, and his father worked in the clothing district of Manhattan. Powell has been a mediocre student since he was a child until the university. He even joked that the average academic grade is C. However, he joined the Officer Training Corps (ROTC) when he was studying at the City College of New York. Since then, he has discovered his love for discipline, military ranks, and military friendship, and he has become the leader of a thousand student organizations. Finally, he chose to enter after graduating from college. The army serves as the starting point for the profession. He pointed out in his memoirs, “As a black in American society, there is no path (than the Army) that provides more opportunities.”
The Vietnam War became an opportunity for Powell to show his prowess. He was particularly excited when he landed in Vietnam on Christmas Day in 1962. He pointed out in his memoirs that those who were selected to go to Vietnam were considered the future stars of the military, “I became the object of the jealousy of other professional soldiers.” He totaled. He was sent to the battlefield twice, 1962-1963 and 1968-1969.
Before completing the second mission in Vietnam, the helicopter he and the commander boarded crashed to the ground after hitting a tree. Powell suffered minor injuries and sprained his ankle, but he assisted the commander and two colleagues to move to a safe place. He himself won the “Medal of Merit.” His experience in Vietnam led him to conclude that the United States should not start the war easily. “When we move towards war, we need to have a goal that citizens can understand and support, and we need to be able to mobilize all resources to meet the mission, and finally enter the battlefield. Win the war.” On the other hand, if the people cannot be persuaded, the end of the war should not be lightened. He repeatedly emphasized that military generals need to be very honest in presenting the facts to civilian leaders, rather than “supporting half-hearted support for immature reasons.” Half-hearted war”.
Powell started to plan his future when he went to Vietnam for the second time to perform his mission. Before the end of the mission, he completed the GRE test for entering graduate school, then returned to the United States and successfully entered the George Washington University Business School, and then entered the Pentagon after graduation. He originally planned to become a computer engineer in the Department of Defense, but he did not expect to apply for a White House Fellowship on the advice of his Army colleagues. In the end, he defeated more than 1,000 applicants and entered the White House’s budget and management departments to perform short-term work. His super learning ability and hard work earned him the attention of important members of the White House, but he went to South Korea in 1973 to participate in the training of the US military in South Korea, and then returned to the United States to enter the War College for further studies.
In 1977, National Security Advisor Brzezinski invited Powell to work in the National Security Council, but was rejected. A few months later, Brzezinski tried to invite Powell again, but at the same time the main staff of the Pentagon Secretary of Defense also wanted to hire Powell. He finally chose to work for the Department of Defense, so he became aware of Washington’s operations, lobbying, and negotiations. Professionals.
The Iraq War-a career stain
In the fall of 1989, President Bush appointed Powell as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His first task in this post was to promote the reduction and reorganization of the army. In the same year, when the United States attacked Panama, Powell’s public image quickly gained public attention. Then, President Bush Sr. decided to send troops to launch the Gulf War and quickly expelled Saddam’s army from Kuwait, allowing Powell to be treated like a “national hero”.
Powell suggested in 1990 that President Bush Sr. send a large number of troops to Kuwait to overwhelm Saddam’s aggression and complete the war in a short period of time. His war mentality—determine the specific goal you want to achieve, and leave after execution— -Become an important guiding principle of the U.S. military.
After Clinton came to power, some officials in Powell and the Clinton administration had differences in their policy views. He opposed the US bombing of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He believed that limited aerial bombing could not affect the behavior of the Serbs. At the same time, the political objectives of military operations were not clear enough. Other members clashed repeatedly, and he finally stepped down as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the end of September 1993.
In 1995, Powell published his autobiography “My American Road” to test whether he could run for president. Although his support was quite high, some right-wing members of the Republican Party opposed his candidacy, and more importantly, his wife did not support him. So in 1995, It was announced in November 2015 that he had no intention to stand for election.
After Bush Jr. entered the presidential election in 2000, Powell joined his campaign to help formulate policies and deliver speeches on campaign occasions. After his election in 2001, Bush’s diplomatic team privately determined that Powell would serve as Secretary of State, and Powell also showed interest. In the end Powell became the first cabinet member appointed by Bush Jr.
Powell’s military background was under the strong leadership of Vice President Cheney, Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, and National Security Advisor Rice. In the end, he was constrained everywhere, making it difficult to play a role in policy. Finally, when Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Rice all persuaded Bush Jr. to start the Iraq war, Powell strongly warned Bush that he should end the war in Afghanistan first. There was insufficient domestic and foreign support to attack Iraq, but Bush Jr. Determined. The White House and the Department of Defense finally asked Powell to claim in the United Nations speech that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction to promote the legitimacy of attacking Iraq. As Secretary of State, Powell could not resist the pressure. A stain.” He said in an interview with the media in 2005.
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