Colin Powell, former secretary of state under President George W. Bush, endorsed President Obama for re-election in 2012, saying that he supported him in 2008 and will “stick with” Obama in 2012. Powell made the announcement in an appearance on “CBS This Morning” Thursday.
“I voted for him in 2008 and I plan to stick with him in 2012,” Powell said.
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Powell cited several reasons for the endorsement, namely the economy and foreign policy. On the economy, Powell said Obama has turned things around from the crisis in 2008, saying “I think generally we’ve come out of the dive and starting to gain altitude.” Powell said Romney’s solution to the economy is “essentially let’s cut taxes and compensate for that with other things,” adding that the compensation doesn’t cover all the cuts.
On foreign policy, Powell called Romney a “moving target” who contradicted his previous positions in Monday night’s foreign policy debate, including on when to pull out of Iraq and Afghanistan. Conversely, Powell said he approved of Obama’s move to get us out of those countries and said his efforts to protect the United States from terrorism have been “very, very solid.”
Finally, Powell said he was more comfortable with Obama’s policies on a range of issues including climate change, immigration, education, and his view that ‘Obamacare’ should stay in place.
