In his recent town meeting on race relations in Akron, Ohio, President Clinton engaged in an exchange about the Army ''affirmative action program'' that led to the promotion of Colin Powell to brigadier general. As the session wound down, the writer Abigail Thernstrom challenged the President. ''Americans believe in affirmative action,'' she charged. ''They don't believe in preferences.'' The President then walked toward Ms. Thernstrom, stood over her and asked: ''Abigail, do you favor the U.S. Army abolishing the affirmative action program that produced Colin Powell? Yes or no? Yes or no?''

The President and Ms. Thernstrom did not know what they were talking about. There was no affirmative action program that prompted Colin Powell's promotion to brigadier general in 1978.

Mr. Powell and several other black colonels received their first stars while I was Secretary of the Army, from 1977 to 1981. All of those black men, and one black woman, were as qualified to move up the chain of command as their white colleagues. They all served their nation with distinction. I did not promote these black people to the rank of general officer through an Army- or Cliff Alexander-invented affirmative action plan.

But those promotions, including Colin Powell's, did not just happen. At an early point in my tenure as Secretary, I held up a list of proposed general officers because no black colonels had been promoted, even though many had achieved that rank and served with distinction. I met with the General Officer Board, and other boards subsequent to the first one, and gave them a series of instructions.