Colin Powell is talking on This Week With George Stephanopoulos, defending the adminstration against the statement of Kerry that Iraq was a “profound diversion”. This is disturbing when we look at the stories told abolut Powell by Bob Woodward in both his books on the Bush wars (Bush at War and Plan of Attack), and how Powell was disturbed with the diversion of resources to Iraq from Afganistan. His defense today was basically that Afghanistan was a success. I think he is treading water professionally, in terms of his own real convictions; he is obviously deciding to “stay the course”, perhaps holding on to the hope that he can achieve something from the inside rather than as an outcast, which he would become (if only he would decide to say “enough”, and add to the swelling ranks of people who have said “enough” like Paul O’Neill, Richard Clarke, John DiIulio, Joseph Wilson , and …well, who’s next?

Now Madeline Albright is now on, saying, NO, we DID drop the ball in Afganistan by removing our most of our focus on Al-Quieda. But she’s a Democrat, so what does she know?