For years, the well-informed among us have known that Colin Powell was "the voice in the wilderness" of the Bush administration, the only dissenting insider as the Chief Executive laid down the drumbeat to war.
I was surprised to learn yesterday that some people seeing Powell portrayed in this role in Stone's "W" were previously unaware of how Powell's 'devil's bargain' with Bush had made him into a tragic hero. (as this diarist shows).
While it probably won't be widely seen until it hits home video, Stone's film, despite his reputation for fabulation, will serve the purpose of putting a lesser-known truth into wider circulation, and I believe will help to clear the way for an active role for Powell in an Obama administration. This, I think, is Stone's finest hour as a propagandist.
Powell's motive in joining the Bush Administration really does seem to have been to better serve his country. By helping to restore Powell's reputation, Stone may have helped to prevent a precipitate end to the career of one of this nation's most capable servants, at a time when we cannot afford to waste any talent.