General, veteran, and former general Colin Powell is backing Hillary Clinton in her run for president. Powell, who served as Secretary of State under George W. Bush, has long been suspected of supporting Clinton despite being a prominent Republican, but his recent public endorsement is something new. Powell made his announcement at a lunch he was attending in Long Island, and Robert Brodsky, a journalist working for Newsday, broke the story.
Powell seems to be not so for Clinton as against Trump and said that the Republican presidential nominee is a “national disgrace.” Powell went on to say that Trump has insulted millions of Americans in entire groups including African-Americans, Latinos, veterans and others.
Notably, Powell said that he feels Trump lacks the “stamina” to serve as president, throwing back an accusation that Trump has made of a number of political rivals including Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton.
Powell’s disgust with Trump is well known. Recently, leaked emails between Powell and Condoleezza Rice revealed that Powell saw Trump’s “birther” comments questioning President Obama’s citizenship to be racist and disgraceful.
It’s still big news, however, that such a prominent Republican would endorse a democratic presidential nominee. Because Powell has served at such levels of the government, his opinion should carry considerable influence.