Will Colin Powell Endorse Obama?

Retired Gen. Colin Powell, a national security adviser to the last three Republican presidents, now may endorse Barack Obama, according to Republican sources. The rumors of this endorsement began to spread after it was announced that Powell would appear on "Meet the Press" this Sunday.

Powell has effectively stayed out of the political arena since he stepped down from his position of Secretary of State under President Bush in 2004, and no one has any idea what he's going to say on Sunday.

An endorsement from Powell at this point in the campaign could be big for Obama. As of now, Powell is the biggest name in politics that remains on the sidelines of this presidential race. Endorsements don't carry as much weight as they used to, but if Powell threw his support behind Obama, it would get several days worth of coverage and would dominate the news cycles.

It also might reassure some undecided voters who are concerned about voting for an African-American they don't know by hearing some validation from an African-American they know and respect. Powell holds an unusual position in American politics as a respected elder political figure who was never president, and was also talked about as the possible first African-American nominee of a major party back in 1996.

In addition, with Powell's unassailable national security credentials, an endorsement could also reassure some undecided voters who are unsure if Obama is ready to be commander-in-chief, and it would essentially erase any advantage John McCain would have on national security come election day.

Some McCain advisers have a bad feeling in their gut that he will announce his support for Obama on Sunday. “It’s going to make a lot of news, and certainly be personally embarrassing for McCain," a McCain official said. "It comes at a time when we need momentum, and it would create momentum against us.”

A friend and ex-aide said that Powell was extremely "upset" by the "vitriol, bile and prejudice" aimed at Obama on the campaign trail. However, Powell is a long-time Republican and friend of John McCain.

I am not convinced that he will come out and endorse either candidate (yes, it is possible that he will endorse McCain) on Sunday. He may appear to lean toward one candidate or the other (probably Obama), but he's a cautious guy, so he probably won't make any sweeping statement or endorsement in full support of either candidate on "Meet the Press."

Rumors of him coming out to endorse Obama surfaced during the primaries and around the time of the conventions, but to no effect. Also, he has managed to stay out of partisan politics for four years now, and I am not convinced that he will just dive in all of a sudden.

Of course, if he strongly believes that Obama will win anyway, he may just jump on the bandwagon so he can get a national security position in Obama's cabinet. But given Powell's reputation for dignity and honesty, that is very unlikely. We'll just have to wait and see what happens on Sunday.

UPDATE: Sources close to Powell say that he will probably stop short of a formal endorsement of Barack Obama on "Meet the Press" on Sunday morning, and it is expected to be more implied than explicit. A well-informed source told the New York Daily News: "After Sunday people aren't going to have any doubt who he's voting for." Full story here.