Former Secretary of State Colin Powell Colin Luther PowellHow each of us can help to cure our nation's ills Bush endorsing Biden? Don't hold your breath Red meat for the right wingers will be the main course at RNC MORE said the Republican Party needs to "get a grip on itself" as Republicans flock to defend the president while the impeachment inquiry continues.

The retired U.S. Army general told a crowd at The Jefferson Series, an event hosted by The New Albany Community Foundation, that Republican leaders need to be comfortable speaking up when they see something wrong.

"The Republican Party has got to get a grip on itself," Powell said. "Republican leaders and members of the Congress, both Senate and the House, are holding back because they're terrified of what will happen to any one of them if they speak out."

“The Republican party has got to get a grip on itself,” Former Secy. of State Colin Powell on the state of the current GOP. “Republican leaders and members of the Congress… are holding back because they’re terrified of what will happen [to] any one of them if they speak out." pic.twitter.com/zkCScy8uA1 — CNN (@CNN) October 6, 2019

Powell added that the country's foreign policy is "in shambles right now."

"I see things happening that are hard to understand," he said.

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Powell, who describes himself as a "moderate Republican," referenced the controversy surrounding the President Trump Donald John TrumpFederal prosecutor speaks out, says Barr 'has brought shame' on Justice Dept. Former Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick MORE's reported Sharpie extension of the path of Hurricane Dorian to reach Alabama and the administration's efforts to back up the president.

"This is not the way the country is supposed to run," he said. "And Congress is one of the institutions that should be doing something about this."

"We've got to remember what the Constitution started with: 'we the People,' not 'me the President,'" he added.