NATIONAL HEADLINES
Bush woos Powell for Secretary of State job
By DAN K. THOMASSON
Scripps Howard News Service May 25, 2000
- George W. Bush's first choice for secretary of state is Gen.
Colin Powell, according to those close to the Texas governor's
campaign. Powell, they said, has indicated he probably would
accept.
At the same time, these sources said that Bush would be inclined
to offer the job of defense secretary to his one-time nemesis,
Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
Bush is being urged by some aides to announce his choices at the
Republican National Convention in Philadelphia in August on the
belief that both men are so popular and distinguished in their
own right, that their prospective high-ranking participation in a
Bush administration would attract independents and crossover
Democratic votes.
>From this standpoint, the naming of Powell and McCain as
potential Cabinet members, would be more important to the
campaign than the vice presidential selection. By attracting
independents and crossover voters with McCain and Powell, Bush
would be free to name a running mate who appeals more to the
conservative voters on issues such as abortion.
The presence of Powell and McCain, also would go a long way
toward subduing voter concerns about Bush's lack of expertise in
foreign policy and national security, now being exploited by his
opponent, Vice President Al Gore.
The governor is said to favor Condoleezza Rice for appointment as
his national security adviser, the nation's second-ranking
diplomatic post. Ms. Rice currently is Bush's top on-staff
campaign adviser on foreign policy matters.
Powell, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has made it
abundantly clear that he will not run for office even if drafted
to do so. He has repeatedly refused to seek the presidency
despite polls showing that he would have an excellent chance of
becoming the first African American to occupy the White House.
He also declined overtures to become Republican nominee Robert
Dole's running mate in the 1996 election and would not accept a
vice presidential offer from Gov. Bush, although the presumptive
GOP nominee is said to have considered him as number one on his
list of potential running mates.
Powell's reluctance to seek the presidency or join a presidential
ticket, despite the surveys that continuously place him at the
top among popular politicians, is widely believed to stem from
his wife's fears for his safety. Mrs. Powell is said to have
strong apprehensions about the vulnerability of the first black
to be elected president or vice president.
But Powell and his wife, Alma, reportedly have expressed no such
reservations about his accepting the high Cabinet post.
Powell, Rice and several former top-ranking foreign policy
experts, including former Secretaries of State George Shultz and
Henry Kissinger were at Bush's side for a major foreign policy
statement in Washington on Tuesday in which Bush announced that
he would consider unilateral reduction in the nation's nuclear
arsenal. The presence of so much expertise alongside the
governor clearly was aimed at offsetting continuing challenges
about his lack of foreign policy experience or understanding.
Why not Powell for secretary of defense, instead of state?
Powell has enormous worldwide recognition and respect. He would
bring both a military and diplomatic understanding to the post at
State. Enlisting Powell for this job also allows Bush to offer an
equally high position to McCain, whose support is considered
important to Bush's election hopes, particularly among moderates.
The Arizona lawmaker and Vietnam war hero is said to be tired of
the Senate, where his efforts to reform campaign funding laws
have been frustrated by the GOP leadership. Although generally
considered a conservative, he is not particularly well-liked
among fellow Republicans because of an abrasive, often pugnacious
approach to disputes.
Losing McCain to the Cabinet would not hurt the majority the GOP
is expected to maintain in the Senate. The appointment of a
replacement would be controlled by the Republicans in Arizona.
Should McCain accept an offer to run the Defense Department, it
would satisfy two potential problem blocs for Bush _ those who
believe he should be chosen as the vice presidential nominee and
those who fear he will be, namely religious conservatives angered
by his primary attack on Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell.
Bush and McCain aren't great friends, but sources say they have
put aside most of their differences and that Bush genuinely wants
McCain in his administration.
Although candidates don't often announce who they will put in a
Cabinet on the belief that voters will think they are
presumptuous, some Bush strategists argue that the naming of two
such visible personalities as Powell and McCain can do nothing
but enhance the governor's stature and put pressure on Gore to
try to respond in kind.
(Dan K. Thomasson is former editor of the Scripps Howard News
Service.)
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Shalom, A Salaam Aleikum, and to all, A Good Day.
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