The significance of a Powell endorsement will be determined by which candidate he endorses (updated)

Obama Aide: We Would Welcome Powell Endorsement

Today Obama spokesperson Linda Douglas said she has no news on the Powell front, but the campaign would obviously love an endorsement. "We would welcome the support of somebody with such a distinguished and honorable career as General Powell," she told me this morning, as Obama's plane flew to Virginia for a rally. Obama has previously cited Powell as a potential member of his administration, and the two have been in touch before. "I know they talk from time to time about foreign policy matters," Douglas said, though she did not know the last time they spoke.

Powell is widely viewed as a thoughtful public servant who carries credibility (and experience) in both parties. Since leaving the Bush administration, he has also been cast as a cautious conservative who sounded alarms about the President approach to Iraq, in both journalistic accounts and, perhaps more saliently, in the new movie "W.," where Powell is the only voice of reason in a bunker packed with incompetent neocons. Private warnings cannot cancel out Powell's hawkish presentation to the U.N., but unlike so many war cheerleaders in politics and the media, he owned up to his mistakes. On national television, Powell called the U.N. address a "blot" on his record.

In a tough period for the G.O.P., Powell remains the party's most beloved national figure. During his tenure as Secretary of State, Powell's unfavorable rating held to a remarkable five percent -- more in line with Santa Claus than a Bush administration official -- while 60 percent of Americans viewed him favorably. (The rest had not heard of him or were undecided, according to the CBS/NYT poll.) His favorables are even higher among registered voters (67%), who tend to follow the news more. Finally, in polls like Gallup, which leave out the "undecided" option, Powell's favorables hit the 80s. "He's one of the most respected people in this country," Douglas added during our conversation, and the numbers back that up.

Powell's unusually strong support across the political spectrum, burned into the public imagination in a long career serving a Clinton, two Bushes and two Iraq wars, makes him one of the few people who's endorsement can actually impact voters across the country. Yet beyond his standing among average Joes, from the plumbres to the six packs, Powell is a low-key, high-impact media figure. "He's a press favorite," explained Time's Mark Halperin on MSNBC today. " would get several days worth of coverage. I think for some voters who are wary about voting for an African-American who they don't know, who doesn't have experience in national security, here is a validator who is almost unique in America today."

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