He died of complications from Covid-19, his family said in a statement. He was fully vaccinated and was treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, his family said.
(My bold)
Oh dear.
Short article. More details to follow.
A complicated man. Made some bad decisions, for sure. His decisions leading to the Iraq war have rather permanently soured me on him. I can’t help but feel that he MUST have known better.
I always thought he was a good and decent man. Too bad. I always thought he put country over party and wouldn’t have tolerated the shenanigans if he had been part of the previous administration.
A real mensch.
A decent and respected man. Always felt these traits were why he was used by the Busch administration to support their agenda.
But the story must also be about his death due to Covid19 complications even though he was fully vaccinated. Yes he was 84, but certainly he must have been given the best treatments available.
By all accounts a decent and honorable man. Unfortunately, his honor and decency were no match for the bureaucratic maneuvering and political infighting skills of Cheney and Rumsfeld who used his sterling reputation to help justify an unjustifiable war. And Powell chose to go along with it knowing that the intelligence was suspect.
I won’t condemn him for it, a number of otherwise reputable people tarnished themselves in the lead up to and execution of the Iraq War. But its an irrefutable stain on his legacy.
He might have become president if W hadn’t wanted it in 2000, and its all about who the party runs, not who the public wants. Plus, he was a mid-level officer in the Americal division in Vietnam, and did his duty going around getting everyone’s cover story straight after My Lai was revealed. That would have hurt him, so he chose not to run.
I’m assuming there must have been some comorbidity/underlying health issues. I guess we’ll hear eventually.
From here:
Powell had multiple myeloma, according to NBC News. It is a type of blood cancer that hurts the body’s ability to fight infections.
The news also said Powell had Parkinsons.
I respected him and wished that he’d run for President. He was misinformed and manipulated after 9/11.
His years of service should be honored in some way.
Media outlets should mention Powell’s other health issues in their headlines. I foresee plenty of quoting out of context.
I would have enthusiastically voted for Powell. I still think he was a good person even if not everything he did was perfect, I don’t think anyone is perfect. I see him as a victim of the 2nd Bush Administration in more than one way. May he rest in peace.
I agree with that. But media likes sensationalism so they’ll fire things up the wrong way again. Shame. I think he was a good man.
Nisi bonum and all that, and I would have voted for him too; despite knowing that he’d been involved in gagging the truth about war crimes.
Fun Colin Powell fact: both he and bullwhip-up-the-butt artist Robert Mapplethorpe had been trained in the Pershing Rifles, though not at the same time or company.
Vaccinations teach your immune system what the disease looks like.
No immune system? Vaccine no work. Immune system overloaded with work? Vaccine no work.
He had cancer. There’s only so much you can do. For people in his situation the best defense is defense in depth. You try to get the national vaccination rate high enough that disease can’t find a vector through to people who are immunocompromised. For as wealthy or important as he might have been, his nation wasn’t sufficiently unified and dignified to do what was needed on that one.
Yes irresponsible to mention he was fully vaccinated without immediately mentioning his multiple myeloma.
As for Powell himself, while his legacy is indubitably stained by his infamous address to the UN, it is overall a remarkable American saga of enterprise and achievement. He was perhaps the first non-white person who could credibly be seen as a US President and paved the way for Obama.
His endorsement of Obama in 2008 was perhaps his last significant public moment and the portion that begins here is particularly moving:
This is from Barrack Obama (taken from Facebook)…
Years ago, when he was asked to reflect on his own life, General Colin Powell described himself as “first and foremost a problem-solver.” It was true, of course. But he was far more than that.
General Powell was an exemplary soldier and an exemplary patriot. He was at the center of some of the most consequential events of our lifetimes – serving two decorated tours in Vietnam; guiding U.S. strategy in the Gulf War; serving as National Security Advisor, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Secretary of State; offering counsel to four presidents; and helping shape American foreign policy for decades. Everyone who worked with General Powell appreciated his clarity of thought, insistence on seeing all sides, and ability to execute. And although he’d be the first to acknowledge that he didn’t get every call right, his actions reflected what he believed was best for America and the people he served.
Along the way, General Powell helped a generation of young people set their sights higher. He never denied the role that race played in his own life and in our society more broadly. But he also refused to accept that race would limit his dreams, and through his steady and principled leadership, helped pave the way for so many who would follow. It was the way Colin Powell saw the world – not as a starry-eyed idealist, but as someone with deep and abiding faith in this country and what it stands for – that made him such a central figure.
On a personal level, I was deeply appreciative that someone like General Powell, who had been associated with Republican administrations in the past, was willing to endorse me in 2008. But what impressed me even more was how he did it. At a time when conspiracy theories were swirling, with some questioning my faith, General Powell took the opportunity to get to the heart of the matter in a way only he could.
“The correct answer is, he is not a Muslim; he’s a Christian,” General Powell said. “But the really right answer is, ‘What if he is?’ Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no, that’s not America. Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?”
That’s who Colin Powell was. He understood what was best in this country, and tried to bring his own life, career, and public statements in line with that ideal. It’s why, for all the battles he fought and problems he solved, Michelle and I will always look to General Powell as an example of what America – and Americans – can and should be if we wish to remain the last, best hope of earth.
Our family sends our thoughts to Alma, their three children and grandchildren, and everyone mourning his loss today.
And I can believe Obama wrote that. Damn he’s good.
RIP, General. 
Geez, I’m already seeing anti-vaxxers using this as “proof” that Covid vaccines don’t work. 
As other poster commented, Powell had a compromised immune system by the end. In his case it was clear that he depended in the end on herd immunity. Of course, his former party has many in power who are making sure that is not available. 