Powell Endorses Obama

From The NYT:

WASHINGTON—Former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell endorsed Senator Barack Obama for president on Sunday morning as a candidate who was reaching out in a “more diverse and inclusive way across our society” and offering a “calm, patient, intellectual, steady approach” to the nation’s problems.

The endorsement, on the NBC public affairs program “Meet the Press,” was a major blow to Senator John McCain, who has been a good friend of Mr. Powell for decades. Mr. Powell, a Republican, has advised Mr. McCain in the past on foreign policy....

Powell, like many others, is concerned by the McCain/Palin supporters:

Mr. Powell, who is of the pragmatist camp and has been critical of the Bush administration’s conduct of the war, was said by friends in recent months to be disturbed by some of the neoconservatives who have surrounded Mr. McCain as foreign policy advisers in his presidential campaign.

This is great news for Obama. We're rapidly nearing the end of the campaign and there's no question that anything that comes from McCain at this point will be increasingly absurd and far fetched. Powell's endorsement will no doubt only boost Obama's already sizable lead.