Colin L. Powell

Colin L. Powell (General, retired) resigned November 15, 2004, as Secretary of the U.S. Department of State. Powell had served in that capacity throughout the first administration of George W. Bush.

Prior to his appointment as Secretary of State Powell "was the chairman of America's Promise: The Alliance for Youth, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to mobilizing people from every sector of American life to build the character and competence of young people."

"Secretary Powell was a professional soldier for 35 years, during which time he held myriad command and staff positions and rose to the rank of 4-star General. His last assignment, from October 1, 1989 to September 30, 1993, was as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest military position in the Department of Defense. During this time, he oversaw 28 crises, including Operation Desert Storm in the victorious 1991 US-Iraq War. Secretary Powell is a graduate of the City College of New York. He received his MBA from George Washington University." Powell's memoirs published in 2003: My American Journey.

During his time in Vietnam, Powell played a peripheral role in the army's coverup of the My Lai Massacre. 


 * Director, Council on Foreign Relations
 * Former member of Advisory Council (chair 1996-2000), Children's Health Fund
 * Advisory Board, George C. Marshall Foundation
 * Board of Overseers, International Rescue Committee
 * Leadership Council, Initiative for Global Development
 * Honorary Chair, World Justice Project
 * Strategic Advisor, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Related SourceWatch articles

 * The Cheney-Rumsfeld Cabal Deception
 * Vulcans

External articles

 * The Powell Doctrine.
 * William F. Jasper, Like Ike, The New American, March 20, 1995. Good biographical background on Powell and his path to the top.
 * Christopher Marquis, Powell Admits No Hard Proof in Linking Iraq to Al Qaeda, New York Times, January 9, 2004: "Secretary of State Colin L. Powell conceded Thursday that despite his assertions to the United Nations last year, he had no 'smoking gun' proof of a link between the government of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and terrorists of Al Qaeda. ... 'I have not seen smoking-gun, concrete evidence about the connection,' Mr. Powell said, in response to a question at a news conference. 'But I think the possibility of such connections did exist, and it was prudent to consider them at the time that we did.'"
 * Robert Parry, Colin Powell: Failed Opportunist, ConsortiumNews, November 26, 2004. An overview of Powell's career subdivided into the main sordid chapters of his life.
 * Robert Parry and Norman Solomon, "Colin Powell's Legend, Consortium News. These reports, by investigative journalists Normon Solomon and Robert Parry, detail Powell's "career as a military bureaucrat," a "consummate team player" who "learned that a military bureaucrat succeeds best by sidestepping controversy and keeping quiet when superiors screw up." Examples include his role in the army's coverup of the My Lai massacre, his involvement in Reagan-era war games including the Iran/Contra scandal, and the secret U.S. policy in the 1980s to supply Saddam Hussein with military equipment.
 * Paul de Rooij, A Political Obituary: Powell, D.O.A., DissidentVoice, May 27, 2004. This article picks up where Parry/Solomon end.  It is a critical assessment of his term as Secretary of State.
 * Fred Kaplan, "Why Powell Had To Go. And how will Condi fare as his successor?" Slate, November 15, 2004.
 * Robin Gedye, "Powell criticises Iraq troop levels and rift with Europe," News Telegraph (UK), February 26, 2005.
 * "Former aide: Powell WMD speech 'lowest point in my life'," CNN, August 23, 2005.
 * "Powell calls pre-Iraq U.N. speech a 'blot' on his record," Associated Press (USA Today), September 8, 2005.
 * "Powell says he was fired by Bush Admin," MSNBC/YouTube, posted October 1, 2006.
 * "The Architects of War: Where Are They Now?" Think Progress, July 2007.
 * Sarah Baxter, "Powell tried to talk Bush out of war," The Sunday Times (UK), July 8, 2007.