Powell’s Departure and Foreign Policy Changes

Re “Powell to Step Down; Rice to Succeed Him,” Nov. 16: Although there are those who bemoan Colin Powell’s decision to step down at the end of President Bush’s first term, the truth is he waited too long. As a veteran of Vietnam, Powell, before our invasion of Iraq, advocated a policy that reflected his experiences in Southeast Asia: Never enter into an armed conflict without a clear exit strategy.

Although he argued for this position against Bush, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and national security advisor Condoleezza Rice, his words fell on deaf ears. At that point, had he done the honorable thing and resigned in protest in 2002, perhaps we would not have the quagmire that Iraq has become today, with more than 1,200 American soldiers dead and no exit strategy in sight.

Garner Simmons

Woodland Hills

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The only centrist voice of reason has left the secretary of State job, and the nominee to replace him is just another “yes” person who will automatically bow to the president’s wishes, and one whose major accomplishment was sitting on the Chevron USA board of directors and has a tanker named after her.

Other changes will follow, I’m sure, and all in the same direction -- hard turn right. I had hoped that our president for the next four years would realize that he no longer has to kowtow to the anti-constitutional religious right or the hard-core right wing of the Republican Party, and move toward trying to assure the rest of the world that the U.S. really stands for more than vengeance and autocracy -- wrong! All I can sadly say is paraphrasing a long-ago movie: Buckle up your seat belts, boys, it’s going to be bumpy ride.

Tom Reinberger

Glendora

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Powell for president in ’08.

Steve Morsa

Thousand Oaks

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With the announcement that Bush is appointing Rice as secretary of State, we can tell that the status of our foreign policy is going to get much worse. Her ineptitude as national security advisor will spill over into her new role. It is frightening to see where the Bush administration is taking us -- definitely more hawkish.

Robert H. Fernandez

Granada Hills

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Re “Education Secretary Paige Plans to Step Down,” Nov. 13: I am a member of the National Education Assn. Rod Paige called me a terrorist. He called every member of my union a terrorist. Good riddance to Paige, although I assume his replacement will be no better.

Jon Krampner

Los Angeles