Colin Powell, Prominent Republican, Endorses Obama For A Second Term

Colin Powell, a prominent Republican and key figure in the Bush administration, has stepped forward to endorse President Barack Obama for a second term in the White House.

Colin Powell’s Obama endorsement isn’t the first of its kind among prominent Republicans in recent weeks in what has emerged as not only a tight race but one that has effectively revealed America’s current state as a house divided.

But Colin Powell has also broken ranks with Republicans in recent years after serving as Secretary of State and chairman of the joint chiefs of staff under former President Bush.

Speaking to CBS News, Powell confirmed he was endorsing Obama a second time, saying:

“You know, I voted for him in 2008 and I plan to stick with him in 2012 and will vote for him and Vice President Joe Biden next month … So that’s an endorsement for President Obama for reelection.”

Powell, who opined that moderate Republicans like himself and John McCain were a “dying breed,” pointed to the economy and foreign policies as two reasons he believes that Barack Obama is the right man for the job as America struggles to re-chart its course in 2012 and beyond.

Colin Powell explained:

“I saw over the next several years stabilization come back in the financial community, housing is now starting to pick up after four years, it’s starting to pick up … Consumer confidence is rising. So I think generally we’ve come out of the dive and [started] to gain altitude.”

And former Secretary of State Powell says that the last debate on foreign policy was worrisome when considering a Mitt Romney presidency, as the former Massachusetts governor has been all over the map in regards to his own positions:

“This is my decision based on my looking at it as a citizen … One day [Romney] has a certain strong view about staying in Afghanistan but then on Monday night he agrees with the withdrawal. Same thing in Iraq … On every issue that was discussed on Monday night, Gov. Romney agreed with the president, with some nuances, but this is quite a different set of foreign policy views than he had earlier in the campaign.”

Colin Powell says that despite his two-time Obama endorsement, he is still a Republican.