In a meeting with editorial writers three years ago, Secretary of State Colin Powell made it clear where his loyalties lay. He acknowledged having occasional differences with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and to engaging in vigorous debates about the proper course the nation should take in the world. But at the end of the day, he said, he cared about the opinion of only one man — President Bush.
Powell, who announced this week he is resigning, leaves a legacy that includes his attributes as an intelligent, dedicated and passionate patriot. But most of all, he leaves the legacy of loyalty. He was the consummate good soldier, who earned credibility through his charm, wit and articulate poise and also through his dogged determination to make the president look good.
Those are noble traits, considering many observers believe Powell could have run successfully for the White House himself after the Gulf War.
However, they also led him to deliver a speech to the United Nations that some believe will be a tarnish on that legacy. In an effort to rally international support for an assault on Iraq, Powell addressed the Security Council on Feb. 5, 2003, and laid out convincing evidence that Saddam Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction. Those claims later proved to be false.
While that may have hurt the image some people had of Powell as the voice of anti-war sentiment in the administration, he has never wavered in his public pronouncements that the war in Iraq was the right thing to do. Even his resignation letter to the president said, "I am pleased to have been part of a team that launched the global war against terror, liberated the Afghan and Iraqi people." That is an indication that his differences with others in the administration may have been more a matter of degrees than any major policy disagreements.
Or, perhaps, he knew how to get his point across without being a disruptive influence — a trait that seems to be lacking in much of the world these days. Indeed, Powell's personal charm has allowed him to remain much more popular in international circles than the policies he defended.
Perhaps Powell had reasons for resigning other than those he has stated publicly. But he is 67 years old, and he has given many years of dedicated service to his country. He recently described the hectic life of a secretary of state, where he often had to jump aboard an aircraft, take a sleeping pill and hope to be ready for the next important encounter when he landed. It is a hectic, pressure-filled life. He told reporters he never intended to serve more than one term.
Powell leaves a host of unfinished business. But then, the work of international relations is never really finished.
Our hope is that Powell's work in the public arena is not completely finished, either.