I think that's a little nicer than the Exurban League's characterization of retired Gen. Colin Powell's sudden realization that President Obama is a tax-and-spend liberal.

Colin Powell, one of President Obama's most prominent Republican supporters, expressed concern Friday that the president's ambitious blitz of costly initiatives may be enlarging the size of government and the federal debt too much.

"I'm concerned at the number of programs that are being presented, the bills associated with these programs and the additional government that will be needed to execute them," Mr. Powell said in an excerpt of an interview with CNN's John King, released by the network Friday morning.

Mr. Powell, a retired U.S. army general who rose to political prominence after a long and accomplished military career, said that health care reform and many of Mr. Obama's other initiatives are "important" to Americans.

But, he said, "one of the cautions that has to be given to the president — and I've talked to some of his people about this — is that you can't have so many things on the table that you can't absorb it all."

"And we can't pay for it all," said Mr. Powell, who was the first African-American to serve as secretary of state, under former President George W. Bush. He was also national security adviser to President Reagan, and was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President George H.W. Bush from 1989 to 1993.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, John McCain is no conservative right-winger. It's difficult to understand why the "moderate" Republican Powell would've ever thought Obama was more in line with his views than McCain.

Powell isn't alone. There are a number of "Republicans" who are now becoming suddenly dismayed at the fact that Obama isn't the moderate they thought he was.

I take no delight in this.

Told you so.