Memo to Colin Powell: You're irrelevant, sparky

I don't know about you guys, our dear readers, but we're getting pretty sick of Colin Powell. We were sick of him in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, and we were sick of him when he endorsed Barack Obama. (We knew what that endorsement was about, by the way.) But now he thinks he can speak out about conservatism and has chosen to lecture us about where we, as conservatives, need to go:

In an interview with CNN's Fareed Zakaria for Sunday's "GPS" program, President Bush's former secretary of state said his party's attempt "to use polarization for political advantage" backfired last month.

"I think the party has to take a hard look at itself," Powell said in the interview, which was taped Wednesday. "There is nothing wrong with being conservative. There is nothing wrong with having socially conservative views — I don't object to that. But if the party wants to have a future in this country, it has to face some realities. In another 20 years, the majority in this country will be the minority."

Powell, who crossed party lines and endorsed President-elect Barack Obama just weeks before the election, said the GOP must see what is in the "hearts and minds" of African-American, Hispanic and Asian voters "and not just try to influence them by… the principles and dogma."

"I think the party has to stop shouting at the world and at the country,"Powell said. "I think that the party has to take a hard look at itself, and I've talked to a number of leaders in recent weeks and they understand that." Powell, who says he still considers himself a Republican, said his party should also stop listening to conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

"Can we continue to listen to Rush Limbaugh?" Powell asked. "Is this really the kind of party that we want to be when these kinds of spokespersons seem to appeal to our lesser instincts rather than our better instincts?"

Um, General Powell, with all due respect, Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer and a commentator. He's not a party leader. In fact, if you ever listened to him, he is constantly criticizing the party for the direction it's going because it is turning it's back on the conservative roots fomented by Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan. Sarah Palin embodied those roots, and that is why the Republican base was willing to let bygones be bygones, and vote for McCain. Had it NOT been for Sarah Palin, McCain wouldn't even have racked up half of the 59 million-plus votes he got.

Is there room for social conservatives? Yes. There's also room for fiscal conservatives and national security conservatives. No one wants to throw these people out of the party, except maybe squishy Republicans like Colin Powell. Frankly, we think he believes his opinion matters because the guy he backed won in the end. That's nice, but it really doesn't mean squat. Our side didn't win, but we've got quite a few voices on our side that are already looking at the future and how to bring the party back to prominence. And we're sorry to say, but Colin Powell isn't one of those voices.

Publius II