Powell never belonged in the Republican Party.  Rush doesn't sugar coat anything or opt for political correctness over common sense and neither does Dick Cheney.  Dick wasted no time in offering his take on Powell.  Bob should have expected no less from the former VP. 

Rush and common sense in the same sentence is a stretch. The lack of a sugar coat is accurate though. More like the opposite. He depends on rabble rousing for his bread and butter. 

"Bob should have expected no less from the former VP." ??? Are you on a first name basis with everyone who ever spoke into a microphone? And why should anyone care about what Bob should have expected? His expectations are not why we are discussing Cheney.

Thanks for the heads up Monte!

 While both parties need the extreme left/right fractions to imagine change it is the moderates of both parties that drive that car ,so to speak.

I look forward to what Powell has to say.

The Republicans chose a candidate (McCain) who was probably the most "Democrat" like of all the Republican candidates running for President.  Yet Powell rejected him and publicly endorsed the Democrat candidate.  Yeah, Cheney is right.  Powell has left the Republican party.  He ought to just go ahead and announce his party switch on Face The Nation.  Then he could cheat on his taxes, cheat on his wife, drown his girlfriend and become a "Democrat Statesman".

Slightly OT~ but if you have seen the latest RNC ad attack on Pelosi( who I am no fan of at all ,in any shape or form) ...well it is no wonder folks like Powell are turning in droves from the party.

I thought I heard Gen.Powell say that his decision and endorsement was for what he thought was best for America and the American people some months back...

I guess he was just fed-up with being lied to and made to look like a fool....IMHO

I think Arlen Spector said his decision was for what was best for America too. 

I turned the channel when I kept hearing him say his decision was what was best for Spector...not the people he represents---he needs to step down and let some fresh minds--with the intrests of the people of course--take his place....

Spector is only interested in whats best for Spector......

True that Ling~ he was a democrat first,and then changed parties to run for D.A. Now it is all about keeping a job.

Let's hope it gets nasty !

I wanna know what Powell thought to be true for the last eight years.

--virgil

I liked what the General had to say.....very smooth......

Powell did a great job (listening to him while shuttle watching )~  smooth,sensible and honest,IMHO.

Powell,

Defended his position in the republican party.

Dude has political aspirations ... "What kind of party are we ... ?"

http://www.cbsnews.com/vide...

--virgil

How disappointing ... what a waste.

--virgil

Gen. Powell comments were the most impassioned and sweeping defense for the closing of Guantanamo to come from a high-ranking Republican official. 

Gen. Powell pointed out that, "Mr. Cheney is not only disagreeing with President Obama's policy, he is disagreeing with President Bush's policy. President Bush stated repeatedly to international audiences and to the country that he wanted to close Guantanamo."

Addressing President Obama's attempt to fund the closing of Guantanamo, the General said, "President Obama came in saying he would close Guantanamo and he has run into some of those same sorts of problems," he said. "So I think we need to kind of take the heat out of this issue. I think President Obama didn't handle it very well by going up to Congress and asking for $80 billion without a plan. And by frankly, giving enough time to opponents of it to marshal their forces as to why we shouldn't do this."

I agree Sage, and congratulations to the Discovery crew on their fantastic mission, looking forward to many more years of images from the Hubble telescope. 

On the lighter side, I like Jay Leno's idea about closing Guantanamo, he jokes that Pres. Obama is going to turn it into a Pontiac dealership.

  "Gen. Powell pointed out that, "Mr. Cheney is not only disagreeing with President Obama's policy, he is disagreeing with President Bush's policy."

You'd think  the guy would care more for his country and help with the closing of Guantanamo rather than campaign for the Republican presidential ticket.

He defends his position in the party from the rantings of a bankrupt radio entertainer, and from Cheney's half-cocked utterances! Cheney has no credibility in the national political market  arena.

--virgil 

Virgil,

Cheney has a book to sell

 "How I morally bankrupted a country and made a ton of money while doing it."

 Monfred,

That's what I'm talking about ... !

What he should probably do is sell his Vice Presidential notes on to someone else rather than try to market his memoirs.

Now, is not the time for that nonsense.

--virgil

Too bad Guantamino isn't unionized.  Hussein Obama would be fighting for its suvival.  As it is, he and Powell are happy to just outsource the detentions to places where they can have their torture and eat it too.

The United States is now relying heavily on foreign intelligence services to capture, interrogate and detain all but the highest-level terrorist suspects seized outside the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, according to current and former American government officials…

Human rights advocates say that relying on foreign governments to hold and question terrorist suspects could carry significant risks. It could increase the potential for abuse at the hands of foreign interrogators and could also yield bad intelligence, they say…

American officials say that in the last years of the Bush administration and now on Mr. Obama’s watch, the balance has shifted toward leaving all but the most high-level terrorist suspects in foreign rather than American custody. The United States has repatriated hundreds of detainees held at prisons in Cuba, Iraq and Afghanistan, but the current approach is different because it seeks to keep the prisoners out of American custody altogether…

As a safeguard against torture, Mr. Panetta said, the United States would rely on diplomatic assurances of good treatment. The Bush administration sought the same assurances, which critics say are ineffective…

American officials said the United States would still take custody of the most senior Qaeda operatives captured in the future.

drilnliftcrude, why weren't you honest about the contents of this news story; you claim "As it is, he and Powell are happy to just outsource the detentions to places where they can have their torture and eat it too."

But, as the news story reports, "The current approach, which began in the last two years of the Bush administration and has gained momentum under Mr. Obama, is driven in part by court rulings and policy changes that have closed the secret prisons run by the Central Intelligence Agency, and all but ended the transfer of prisoners from outside Iraq and Afghanistan to American military prisons."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009...

Edit: You can now add Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. military's Joint Chiefs of Staff to those calling for the  closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison.

http://people.bakersfield.c...

And so far...WE HAVE HEARD NOTHING F ROM THE JUSTICE DEPT.....maybe they are compiling evidence---and with everything that has been televised--globally--other nations maybe compiling evidence against certain individuals in the future....

Powell embodies what more Americans should be: a person who evaluates each candidate based on their merit, not their political affliation. Those who put partisan politics above all else (I'm talking to all you people who vote party tickets, regardless of your party) are playing a high-powered game of "us vs them" and that rarely results in anything worthwhile. Those of you who see someone who does not vote the party ticket as "traitors" (and you know who you are) are really spitting in the face of what the democratic process is meant to be. It's not meant to be punching the ticket that some party bigwig tells you to punch. It's meant to be the process of evaluating the choices and choosing the ones you feel are best.

Really, with as much playground antics that goes on in politics, is anyone suprised it's such a mess?

Lingtaowoo, the Justice Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility report dealing with the torture-memos is expected to be released soon, and as far as other nations compiling evidence; Judge Baltasar Garzon, of the Spanish National Court, is moving ahead with an investigation of “The Bush Six,” which include Yoo and Bybee, as well as former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales; William J. Haynes II, then general counsel to the Department of Defense; Douglas Feith, former undersecretary of defense for policy; and David Addington, the chief of staff under former Vice President Dick Cheney. These six could possibly face criminal charges in Spain for enabling torture at Guantanamo and elsewhere.

(http://www.spokesman.com/st...)

 "Powell embodies what more Americans should be:" I actually agree with this statement, but for much different reasons.

General Powell is a fine example of an honorable man who dutifully served his country in many capacities. So far, he's never failed to take the high road and maintain his dignity. I have a lot of respect for the man.

I don't, however, agree with most of his political views. I believe THAT is what the democratic process is meant to be.

In my case, after evaluating each candidate based on their merit, I didn't find anyone whom I deemed suitable. I voted AGAINST Obama more than I voted FOR McCain. It's sad when the best that a person can do is support the lessor of the evils..............................That's how I feel about it.

There was nothing dishonest about my comment, Monty.  I included the link to the whole story.  The excerpts I used were accurate in pointing out the hypocrasy of the current administration in that it demonizes the last President for the very policies it is itself continuing.  Hope and change my foot.