Bizarre statement from Colin Powell on Morning Joe today.

[No Elephants]

The discussion was about one of Joe's favorite topics lately, how to fix the Republican brand.

Joe said to Powell that he (Joe) had been encouraged to hear that, despite voting for Obama twice, Powell still considered himself a Republican and wanted to help the Party rebuild.

At some point, Colin said:

"The Republican Party of Ronald Reagan was the Republican Party I grew up in."

:wtf:



Powell was born in April, 1937. The last Republican President when Powell was growing up was Hoover, who sucked in so many directions.

(See what I did there?)

Powell's parents were Republican, as was MLK, Sr., until JFK got Jr. out of jail. The term then was "Lincoln Republican," which was what most African Americans were prior to FDR, then JFK, then LBJ.

Just for the record, I became a Democrat at age 4, watching my father anxiously listening to Presidential election results and never saw a reason to go Republican. So, I very literally grew up in the Democratic Party.

Presidential candidates while Powell was growing up were Alf Landon (when Colin was a tot), Wendell Wilkie, Thomas Dewey (2X), and then Eisenhower-Nixon.

Powell was first eligible to vote in 1958 (voting age being 21 at the time), which was a midterm.

So, the first Republican for whom he voted was Nixon. Then Goldwater (Nixon and Goldwater being two among the very few who supported crazy McCarthy to the bitter end.) Then Nixon again, twice, the second time after Watergate. Then Ford. And then, in 1980, when Powell was 43 frickin' years old, Ronald Reagan.

So how the hell was the Republican Party in which Powell "grew up" the Party of Ronald Reagan?

And no one on the show, Republican or Democrat said, "Huh? Colin, not fer nuttin', but that's flat out impossible."

I don't think Powell has an honest bone in his body. (Neither does Scarborough, but that is another story.)

[Enthusiast]

1. Powell seems like such a nice gentleman.

But we know he misled the nation at the behest of his Commander in Chief. Scarborough probably murdered an intern. So, your assessment is on the money.