Colin Powell, who served as secretary of state during former President George W. Bush’s administration, says he no longer considers himself a Republican due to his intense opposition to President Trump.
Calling the post-Trump era “a moment for accountability,” Powell made the announcement during an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria on Sunday.
“I can no longer call myself a fellow Republican. I’m not a fellow of anything right now,” Powell said. “I’m just a citizen who has voted Republican, voted Democrat throughout my entire career, and right now, I’m just watching my country and not concerned with parties.”
Powell joined the growing list of politicians calling for Trump’s early removal from office, noting that if he were a senator, he would vote to convict on the articles of impeachment the House presented on Monday.
“We’ve got to get Mr. Trump clearly out of this entirely. He’s going to be gone, one way or the other, by next week, and the sooner, the better, whether it is just a relief he takes for himself or it’s an impeachment or just leave, resign, retire,” Powell said.
A longtime critic of Trump, Powell acknowledged that the president won over millions of voters and said the Biden administration will have to accept that these supporters remain a part of the nation.
“This gives us a challenge: How do we talk to that portion of our society that vote in [a] huge percentage [that] went for Mr. Trump? Mr. Trump isn’t there anymore, and so we’ve got to help them come back and join the rest of us,” he said. “Let’s argue with each other. Let’s debate each other. But let’s remember that we have to love each other. That’s who we are. We’re Americans, and we have something to be proud of.”
Though Powell served in a Republican presidential administration, he has also supported Democratic politicians. Powell endorsed Democratic presidential contenders Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden in 2008, 2016, and 2020, respectively.
