February 24, 2005 American History per 2. Austin Henshaw

Colin Powell

Colin Luther Powell was born on April 5, 1937 in New York City, South Bronx. His parents, Luther Theophilus and Maud Ariel Powell, were Jamaican immigrants. He had no brothers or sisters. He was educated in New York public schools.

Powell graduated from the City College of New York, earning a bachelor’s degree in geology. He received a commission as a United States army second lieutenant in June of 1958. He also received a Master of Business Administration degree from George Washington University. He is currently married to Alma Vivian Johnson Powell. He has a son Michael; daughters Linda and Anne; and grandsons Bryan and Jeffrey.

Powell served in Vietnam with the 23rd division in 1968-1969. On December 30, 1959 he was promoted to first lieutenant. About two and a half years later he became a Captain. He was eventually promoted to a 4-star General on April 4, 1989. His last position in the military was as the 12th Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staffs. He held this position from October 1, 1989 to September 30, 1993.

After Powell retired he wrote a memoir, My American Journey in 1995. He became a public speaker, supporting the Republican Party. Many thought he was a possible opponent of Bill Clinton in the 1996 Presidential Election. He declined, in order to protect his family most presumed.

In 1997 he founded America’s Promise, a program to help children disadvantaged from the socio-economical standpoint. During the Presidential Election in 2000, Powell campaigned for George Bush, governor of Texas. When Bush narrowly won the election, Powell was appointed ad the first African American Secretary of State on January 20, 2001.

Powell has been viewed as a fairly competent Secretary of State. His pragmatism balanced those who were more ideology-oriented, such as Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense. He was very popular among Americans. During his time as Secretary of State however, U.S. image dropped during his tenure.

After September 11, the day the Twin Towers fell, Powell’s job intensified. It was up to him to secure a stable coalition in the war on terror. Many of the things he did made him quite a controversial individual. Many condemn him for making a case for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He was opposed to overthrowing Saddam Hussein by force however; despite the fact he asserted Iraq was capable of biological weapons. He did eventually agree with the Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq.

Powell announced he was going to resign on the date of November 15, 2004. Bush nominated current National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice as his successor. She took over on January 26, 2005. She was confirmed by an 85-13 vote in the Senate. Many politicians hope she can wield more successfully her influence within the cabinet than Powell could.

Bibliography

My American Journey, Colin Powell, , publisher unknown, February 16, 2005