Colin Powell
American general and diplomat (1937-2021) · United States · On the map · Politicians · Died at 84
Four-star general who rose to chairman of the Joint Chiefs during Desert Storm, then became the first Black American secretary of state - a tenure defined by a 2003 UN speech making the case for the Iraq War that he would later call riddled with inaccuracies.
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Richard Nixon and Powell, 1973
President Ronald Reagan and National Security Advisor Powell, April 18, 1988
Powell's official portrait as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, c. 1989
Powell, as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, waves from his motorcade during the Persian Gulf War Welcome Home Parade in New York City.Awards
About this person
Born in 1937 in New York to Jamaican immigrants and raised in the South Bronx, Powell earned a geology degree from City College, joined ROTC, and spent 35 years as a professional soldier. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs from 1989 to 1993, he oversaw the invasion of Panama and Desert Storm, codifying the Powell Doctrine that set strict criteria for American military action. He joined the Republican Party in 1995, published his autobiography the same year, and served as George W. Bush's secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. That UN presentation on Iraq's weapons became the defining stain: he resigned after Bush's reelection and admitted the speech contained substantial inaccuracies. He left the Republican Party in 2021 after the Capitol attack and died that October from COVID-19 complications while being treated for blood cancer.
