Editing Colin Powell (section)

===2016 e-mail leaks and criticism of Donald Trump===
Powell was very vocal on the state of the Republican Party. Speaking at a Washington Ideas forum in early October 2015, he warned the audience that the Republican Party had begun a move to the fringe right, lessening the chances of a Republican White House in the future. He also remarked on Republican presidential candidate [[Donald Trump]]'s statements regarding immigrants, noting that there were many immigrants working in Trump hotels.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/colin-powell-slams-donald-trumps-immigration-plan-163454530.html |title=Colin Powell slams Donald Trump's immigration plan |publisher=Yahoo! News |last=Stableford |first=Dylan |date=October 1, 2015 |access-date=September 14, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-date=September 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921203019/https://www.yahoo.com/news/colin-powell-slams-donald-trumps-immigration-plan-163454530.html }}</ref>

In March 2016, Powell denounced the "nastiness" of the [[2016 Republican primaries]] during an interview on [[CBS This Morning|CBS ''This Morning'']]. He compared the race to reality television, and stated that the campaign had gone "into the mud".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/colin-powell-gop-race_us_56dda980e4b0000de405301a |title=Colin Powell: The GOP Race Has 'Gone Into The Mud' |last=Reilly |first=Mollie |work=HuffPost |date=March 7, 2016 |access-date=September 14, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-date=September 13, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913170637/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/colin-powell-gop-race_us_56dda980e4b0000de405301a }}</ref>

In August 2016, Powell accused the [[Hillary Clinton]] campaign of trying to pin her [[Hillary Clinton's email controversy|email controversy]] on him. Speaking to [[People (magazine)|''People'']] magazine, Powell said, "The truth is, she was using [the private email server] for a year before I sent her a memo telling her what I did".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.people.com/article/colin-powell-hillary-clinton-pinning-email-scandal-on-him |title=Colin Powell Says Hillary Clinton's 'People Have Been Trying to Pin' Email Scandal on Him |work=People |date=August 21, 2016 |access-date=September 14, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-date=September 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912194133/http://www.people.com/article/colin-powell-hillary-clinton-pinning-email-scandal-on-him }}</ref>

On 13 September 2016, emails were obtained that revealed Powell's private communications regarding both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Powell privately reiterated his comments regarding Clinton's email scandal, writing, "I have told Hillary's minions repeatedly that they are making a mistake trying to drag me in, yet they still try", and complaining that "Hillary's mafia keeps trying to suck me into it" in another email.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/09/13/colin-powell-hacked-emails/90341788/|title=Colin Powell calls Trump 'national disgrace' in hacked emails|first=William|last=Cummings|website=USA Today|date=September 13, 2016|access-date=August 25, 2021|url-status=live|archive-date=June 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210627150352/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/09/13/colin-powell-hacked-emails/90341788/}}</ref> In another email discussing Clinton's controversy, Powell said she should have told everyone what she did "two years ago", and said that she has not "been covering herself with glory". Writing on the [[2012 Benghazi attack]] controversy surrounding Clinton, Powell said to then U.S. Ambassador [[Susan Rice]], "Benghazi is a stupid witch hunt". Commenting on Clinton in a general sense, he mused that "Everything HRC touches she kind of screws up with hubris", and in another email stated "I would rather not have to vote for her, although she is a friend I respect".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/colin-powell-hillary-clinton_us_57d96524e4b09d7a6880bf1c|title=Colin Powell Attacked Hillary Clinton's 'Hubris' In Leaked Emails|website=[[HuffPost]]|date=September 14, 2016|first=Paul|last=Blumenthal|url-status=live|access-date=September 15, 2016|archive-date=September 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915181356/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/colin-powell-hillary-clinton_us_57d96524e4b09d7a6880bf1c}}</ref>

Powell called Donald Trump a "national disgrace", with "no sense of shame". He wrote of Trump's role in the [[birther]] movement, which he called "racist". He suggested the media ignore Trump: "To go on and call him an idiot just emboldens him". The emails were obtained by the media as the result of a hack.<ref>{{cite news|last=Blake|first=Aaron|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/09/14/here-are-the-juiciest-colin-powell-comments-about-trump-and-clinton-from-his-leaked-emails/|title=Here are the juiciest Colin Powell comments about Trump and Clinton from his hacked emails|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=September 14, 2016|access-date=June 7, 2020|url-status=live|archive-date=June 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200611000603/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/09/14/here-are-the-juiciest-colin-powell-comments-about-trump-and-clinton-from-his-leaked-emails/}}</ref>

Powell endorsed Clinton on 25 October 2016, stating it was "because I think she's qualified, and the other gentleman is not qualified".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/06/30/heres-the-growing-list-of-big-name-republicans-supporting-hillary-clinton/ |title=78 Republican politicians, donors and officials who are supporting Hillary Clinton |last=Blake |first=Aaron |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=November 7, 2016 |access-date=August 25, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=August 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818161636/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/06/30/heres-the-growing-list-of-big-name-republicans-supporting-hillary-clinton/ }}</ref>

Despite not running in the election, Powell received three electoral votes for president from [[faithless electors]] in Washington who had pledged to vote for Clinton, coming in third overall.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/four-washington-electors-break-ranks-and-dont-vote-for-clinton/ |title=Four Washington state electors break ranks and don't vote for Clinton |work=The Seattle Times |last=Brunner |first=Jim |date=December 19, 2016 |url-status=live |access-date=December 19, 2016 |archive-date=December 19, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161219230802/http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/four-washington-electors-break-ranks-and-dont-vote-for-clinton/ }}</ref> After Barack Obama, he was the second black person to receive electoral votes in a presidential election.<ref>{{Cite web|date=November 12, 2019|title=Electoral College Results|url=https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college/results|access-date=October 18, 2021|website=National Archives|language=en|archive-date=October 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211019042904/https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college/results|url-status=live}}</ref>