RIFT BETWEEN DICK, BUSH, COLON AND BOWELL

Say t'aint so! A gaping rift between the Dick and Bush from the Colon Bowell?

Colin Powell has formally endorsed Democratic nominee Barack Obama this morning on "Meet the Press." Powell, of course, was part of the Bush administration as Secretary of State, and along with Condoleeza Rice, the saner half that contrasted with the overwhelming influence of VP Cheney, Secretary of Defence Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz, all of whom pushed for the war in Iraq.

Although Powell eventually fell in line with the administration, and even presented the "evidence" of Saddam's accruing Weapons of Mass Destruction at the UN, the Iraq War was not executed in a manner in line with the Powell doctrine, which dictates we should have broad international support, our objective and exit strategy should be clear, all other, non-violent options have been exhausted, and that the risks and costs have been fully outlined.

Although never publicly admitting it, several sources claim that Powell was enraged by the scant evidence he was asked to present, including the now-infamous "16 words" about Saddam attempting to accrue yellow cake from Niger. Even before the evidence was presented, it had been discredited, because the letterhead was from the office of an official out of Nigerian political life for 20 years.

As the war raged on, and Powell found his influence increasingly diminished, he resigned at the end of Bush's first term (he was most likely asked to do so), to be replaced by National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice. It was only after the Democrats swept the Congressional and Senate elections in 2006 that Rumsfeld, as the scapegoat for the increasingly unpopular war, was forced to resign, allowing the saner, more diplomatic views of Powell, through Condi Rice, to be implemented, such as a bigger push for influence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Now in public life, Powell is taking his first, tepid steps towards rebuking his former boss. His criticisms show the fracturing of the Republican party from the nutso, heavy-handed neocons, and the pragmatists, who evoke the Republicans of old, before the partisanship, before the "either with us or against us" of the Bush Doctrine, whether against other countries, or his own countrymen.