George C. Looney: Obama Has Kept Campaign Promises on Sudan

An actor reading the script. Good boy, George. Now jet off to your Italian villa and shut the fuck up.

Actor and activist George Clooney said Sunday that President Obama has kept his campaign promises to end genocide and get tough with the government in Sudan.

Clooney appeared on ABC's "This Week" to talk about continuing crisis in the African nation as the country faces a heated secession referendum a week from now.

When asked if Obama has kept his vows to tackle issues in the war-torn nation, Clooney said, "Yes, he has."

"It's a tough one to keep, you know?" he said. "There's -- it's a very complicated situation. It is going to get a lot more complicated. We met with the president. The president seems to be very much on top of the issue.

"And we want to make sure -- and our job is to keep the pressure on to make sure that -- that there's no slippage in that at all," Clooney added.

Clooney's partner in Sudan efforts, John Prendergast of the Enough Project in Washington, said it was "President Obama's moment."

"You know, the United States is the biggest actor in Sudan," Prendergast said. "We can have a major influence on whether or not a deal is struck between the North and the South to prevent a war, and we can have a major influence on whether human rights violations continue in Darfur. That's going to take presidential leadership."

So how does any of that drivel explain this?

About 600 people died in fighting in the Sudan region of Darfur in May, the highest monthly toll since peacekeepers were deployed in 2008, officials say.

The joint UN-African Union peacekeeping force said most had died in fighting between Sudan's army and rebels of the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem).

The number of deaths has risen sharply since Jem walked out of peace talks last month.

So violence six months ago was higher than any time in two years, but Obama's in charge of things? Huh?

Meanwhile, the Washington Post is expecting violence to explode on Obama's watch.

"This is the first time I have seen the U.S. government devote so many high-level resources to preventing violence before it happens rather than responding to it after the fact," Samantha Power told me in an interview. Power - whose 2002 book, "A Problem From Hell," chronicled the world's failure to deal with 20th-century genocides and mass slaughters from Armenia and the Holocaust to Rwanda and Bosnia - is now an adviser to Obama.

But these efforts and resources may not be enough. Yes, the world is watching: In addition to Washington's diplomatic push, the African Union is trying to broker peace, European nations are sending economic assistance, and 10,000 U.N. peacekeepers are in southern Sudan monitoring the situation. But the sad reality is that even an actively engaged international community may be unable to head off mass violence in the months or years ahead.

A coup in Khartoum, a cattle raid in the south that escalates into tribal violence, a rogue militia commander deciding to start a new conflict in a fragile border region - there is virtually no limit to the plausible scenarios that could lead to renewed fighting in Sudan. Ethnic and economic tensions, the willingness of political leaders to manipulate them and the easy availability of weapons will continue to make the country vulnerable to violence, even genocide.

If the referendum is not held on time or is tampered with by the north, "there is a huge potential for war," former guerrilla soldier Acuil Malith Banggol told me during my recent trip to the south. "Both parties are arming themselves, and there will be more destruction. . . . There is no way southern Sudan is going to accept being humiliated and subject to slavery, racial discrimination and religious discrimination."

So despite all the efforts of Obama and a guy adept at reading cue cards, violence and genocide are soon expected.

Celebutard Nitwit: 'I Hate the World Without Walter Cronkite'

There's an obvious solution to your misery, George. You're bright guy. You can figure it out.

George Clooney, Hollywood's unofficial spokesman for everything, was among the first to pay tribute to that other great voice of a generation, Walter Cronkite.

"He was the most important voice in our lives for thirty years," the Oscar winner, who delved into the history of the CBS newsroom when he directed and costarred in Good Night and Good Luck, said in a statement Friday night.

"And that voice made people reach for the stars. I hate the world without Walter Cronkite. "

Dude, he read a TelePrompter. Get over it.

H/T Hot Air.

Obama Cleans Up at Clooney's Swiss Fundraisers

Memo to Team McCain: Here's some fodder for your next celebutard commercial.

Two Geneva fundraising events for US presidential candidate Barack Obama hosted by George Clooney have raised more than $900,000 (SFr1 million).

The Hollywood actor and director arrived in Geneva on Tuesday for his first appearance on behalf of the Democratic nominee.

Some 170 contributors – all US citizens – paid $1,000 a head to hear Clooney speak at a cocktail party held at a museum in Geneva's Old Town.

Afterwards, 75 supporters spent $10,000 each to attend "an intimate seated dinner" with the 47-year-old star at the organiser's nearby apartment, according to the American lawyer Charles Adams who set up the twin "private" events.

"Actually most of our guests for dinner are coming from elsewhere – people are flying in from Los Angeles, Prague, London, Zurich and so on," Adams said before the event.

Isn't that special?

So while Team Obama and their media whores trash Sarah Palin as some hick chick from the sticks, fatcat liberals are flying in from across the globe for foreign fundraisers for The Messiah.

Curious how last month Clooney pretended to distance himself from Obama. Guess he figured nobody would pay much attention. Naturally, the media largely ignored it.

Damage Control: Clooney Throws Himself Under Obama's Bus

He's been touted as an unofficial adviser to The Messiah, is hosting a fundraiser for The Anointed One in Switzerland, but now we're supposed to believe these two barely know each other.

Sure.

George Clooney is strongly denying reports that he has been phoning and texting Barack Obama with support and advice on presentational style and policy matters.

Hollywood heart-throb Clooney is known to have strong views on Middle East politics and is a strong supporter of the Democratic Party. Sources claimed he is friendly with Presidential candidate Obama and has become an unofficial advisor.

One source said: ‘A number of members of the Hollywood community, including Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, offered to help raise funds for Barack but it was with George that he struck up this amazing affinity.

So someone's lying here and I have my suspicions who it is.

'George has been giving him advice on things such as presentation, public speaking and body language and he also text and emails him about policy, especially the Middle East.'

But Clooney has issued a strong statement in response to the claims:
"I have never texted or emailed Senator Obama. And I'll offer a million dollars to anyone who could prove otherwise.

'In fact, I've only talked to the Senator once in the last year and a half....on the phone. I've spent more time with Senator McCain (he did my TV show) then I have with Senator Obama.

'I would hope that my friend John McCain would join me in condemning this kind of politics. Although I support Senator Obama I would never be dumb enough to offer policy advice to either candidate. They seem to be doing fine without me."

A spokesman for Barack Obama also denied the story.

Cute little headfake there trying to link himself more with McCain.

Vacuous Obama Advisor to Make Sympathetic Hamdan Film

It's not enough that far left Hollywood icon George Clooney is hosting Swiss fundraisers and advising presumptuous Democrat presidential candidate Barack Obama, but now he's optioned a book on Osama bin Laden's "driver" Salim Hamdan.

Of course, it can't look good that a top adviser, albeit informal, to a man who possibly could become the 44th President is filming a celluloid love note to an associate of the world's number one terrorist.

Not that the media will make the connection or even ask Obama about it. Why, they're busy playing catch up on the John Edwards story.

MANY Americans are outraged that Salim Hamdan - who was Osama bin Laden's chauffeur before his arrest six years ago - will be out of jail before the end of the year.

But Hamdan's jury of six military officers apparently agreed with Nasser al-Bahri, an al Qaeda operative interviewed by Jonathan Mahler for his book "The Challenge," who called Hamdan "a really naive, simple guy who doesn't know the first thing about jihad and was just tagging along for the job."

"The Challenge" follows Hamdan from the Yemeni slums to bin Laden's compound in Afghanistan to his solitary confinement.

While doing research for the book, Mahler interviewed al-Bahri in a prison in Yemen after the USS Cole bombing in 2000. He also spoke to Hamdan's family in Yemen.

While Mahler declined to comment, a source said al-Bahri was sympathetic to a man he felt was "just a poor, uneducated guy who needed a job in a country with an overwhelmingly high unemployment rate."
...
When Hamdan was convicted Wednesday, he cried, fearing life imprisonment. But now he is expected to be freed after five more months at Gitmo to return home to his family in Yemen - or to rejoin al Qaeda.

"The Challenge" has been optioned by George Clooney, who hopes to play Charles Swift - the US Navy officer who helped bring Hamdan's case to the Supreme Court and won a pretrial decision that even terrorists are covered by the Geneva Convention.

No doubt America will be portrayed positively by the patriotic Clooney.

More here.

Good News: George Clooney Now an 'Unofficial Obama Advisor'

This should help cement Obama's status as an empty-headed celebutard, getting advice from this dunce.

Can never have enough far left types to anchor Obama down with.

George Clooney once famously declared he could never run for public office because he’d ‘slept with too many women, done too many drugs and been to too many parties’.

But now the Hollywood heart-throb has entered the political arena at
the highest level – by becoming an unofficial adviser to US Presidential front-runner Barack Obama.

Oscar-winner Clooney, 47, is said to be helping the Democratic candidate to polish his image at home and abroad.

But he is also sharing with Obama his strong opinions on Iraq and the Middle East.

Sources say the actor has tried to hide the pair’s friendship for fear his Left-wing views and playboy image would hurt the Presidential hopeful’s bid for the White House.

But Democratic Party insiders have revealed that Clooney and Obama regularly send texts and emails to each other and speak by phone at least twice a week.

One said last night: ‘They are extremely close. A number of members of the Hollywood community, including Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, offered to help raise funds for Barack but it was with George that he struck up this amazing affinity.

‘George has been giving him advice on things such as presentation, public speaking and body language and he also emails him constantly about policy, especially the Middle East.

‘George is pushing him to be more “balanced” on issues such as US relations with Israel.

'George is pro-Palestinian. And he is also urging Barack to withdraw unconditionally from Iraq if he wins.

‘It’s a very risky relationship. His hope of becoming America’s first black President depends heavily on winning over conservative voters and it would be suicidal for him to be perceived as a tool of a Hollywood Leftie, which is how they regard George.

‘But they text and email each other almost every day and speak on the phone at least a couple of times a week, often more.’

The Ocean’s Eleven star is among many Hollywood figures to have endorsed Obama, including Barbra Streisand, Scarlett Johansson, Warren Beatty and Steven Spielberg.

One of Clooney’s trusted acquaintances said: ‘George is a master at crafting his own image and he is helping Obama to hone his image both domestically and abroad.

'He told me he feels Obama is a once-in-a-lifetime leader. He is doing everything he can behind the scenes to bolster support in Hollywood, not just with other celebrities but with the money men at the studios.’

He's doing everything he can, like hosting fundraisers for Obama in Switzerland.

The acquaintance added: ‘He has tried to keep the true extent of their involvement out of the Press because he is frightened of alienating voters.’

Too late now.

Hot Air links. Thanks!

George Clooney to Host Obama Fatcat Fundraiser ... in Switzerland

This won't help shake that haughty European image Obama has been cultivating. Oh, and who is it who's been whining about being typecast as an empty-headed celebutard?

Subject: A Reception with George Clooney in Switzerland for Senator Barack Obama

Dear Friends,

We are very excited to announce that Academy Award winning Actor George Clooney will be headlining an event for the campaign. The event will be Tuesday, September 2nd in Geneva, Switzerland and we really need your help to make this special event a success.

The evening will be broken down into two parts - a reception for $1,000 where Mr. Clooney will speak and take questions followed by an exclusive dinner at the home of NFC member Charles Adams for $10,000 per person. The dinner is limited to 75 people so if you are interested in attending, please fax in the attached invite as soon as possible. Or if know of anyone you think may be interested in attending, please forward this email.

If you do send this to friends and colleagues abroad, only American Citizens with US Passport numbers can contribute to the campaign.

Thank you so much!!!

Cookie Parker
National Finance Committee, Obama for America
National Chair, Women’s Leadership Initiative
Democratic National Platform Committee, DNC

Maybe Marc Rich will show up.

Via Hot Air.

'Stop Pushing Obama Down Our Throats'

Fans of daytime queen Oprah Winfrey are rebelling against her campaign for Barack Obama, according to a report in the LA Times.

I doubt Winfrey has much to worry about, unless her financial advisers tell her to dummy up at some point.

Although it's true that rallies featuring Winfrey in Iowa and South Carolina have drawn some of the biggest crowds of the campaign so far, Obama's people won't know whether they also triggered a backlash until election day.

Winfrey's website has been buzzing for weeks with angry postings about her involvement in the Illinois senator's campaign, something Hollywood, which always keeps its eye on the public mood, is bound to notice -- this is a town, after all, that measures success by weekly grosses and daily TV ratings.

One posting on her site, Oprah.com, accused the talk diva of being a traitor. (By Thursday, that message string had attracted more than 12,000 views.) Another poster told Winfrey to "stop pushing Obama down our throats." (There were 3,000 hits logged on that one.) Another said: "Do you really know Barack Hussein Obama? Scary & something we have to take into consideration!" (There were more than 4,000 views for that.)

"First of all I want to say that I am a HUGE Oprah fan," one poster wrote. "I love what she stands for. She is a strong woman changing the world. However, I have been extremely disappointed with her recent touring with Barack Obama. It is a manipulation and an abuse of her power and influence on the American culture.

"Let the American people form their own opinion, Oprah."

Prediction: If Obama loses out in the Democrat primaries, expect Winfrey to begin shamelessly fawning and slobbering over the Dragon Lady.

Once celebrity who apparently has gotten a clue is George Clooney.

In a dinner-party conversation in Rome recently, Clooney said that Obama's people have been urging him to go out on the trail. "I've told them that having me out there would hurt more than help. I know they don't see it that way."

Perhaps Winfrey and the rest of Hollywood ought to take a cue from Clooney.

Fabio Bitchslaps Clooney

Frankly, I could care less about Fabio. But this item gives me a good excuse to post some eye candy and isn't that what it's all about?

Fabio calls George Clooney ‘low-class scumbag’

“He was drunk and thought people were taking pictures of him,” Fabio continued. “So I went to the table and explained to him that we were having a charity dinner and I said, ‘You’re more than welcome to come to my table and see if there was a picture of you.’ I apologized and he started being rude so I put him in his place. After I put him in his place — you know I’m three times his size — he got a little scared. I went back to my table and as soon as I sit down he paid his bill, got up and he started insulting the girls. He called the women names. At that point I lost my temper. I went after him and he ran out of the restaurant.”

It’s not clear where in the exchange Fabio infamously told the Oscar winner to “stop being a diva.” In his final assessment, Fabio told OK! “You have to be a low-class, scumbag to start calling a woman a name. If you’re a man, you should never. You should be a gentleman. These women were with me and as a man I defend them. He was lucky he ran out of the restaurant. He’s not even half a man.”

Narcissistic Paranoid Or Merely Delusional?

The mayor and residents of a small town in Italy are experiencing the Wrath of George.

Clooney objects to $15m town plan
George Clooney is leading a residents' revolt against the mayor of a small town in northern Italy.

The star, who owns a villa in Laglio on the shores of Lake Como, is urging his neighbours to sign a petition against further development of the town.

The mayor wants to spend $15m (£7.5m) building parking spaces and a pontoon bridge which would pass right in front of the Hollywood heart-throb's villa.

Mr Clooney is threatening to quit the town if the plans go ahead.

Po' baby! Don't forget your bottle, Pampers; and be sure to stomp your feet and slam the door, too.

In the past strict planning laws have curbed development around the lake, leaving small, unspoilt towns along its shores.

The rich and famous have always considered Lake Como the perfect spot for mountain air, spectacular views and seclusion.

So desirable are the villas that on the rare occasion one comes up for sale, the owner can usually name their price.

Mr Clooney bought the 15-bedroom Villa Oleandra for $10m (£5m) in 2002. The houses close by have almost tripled in value.

But since he arrived in Laglio, things have begun to change. The star of Ocean's 13 says the town, which has a population of 900, is being reshaped in concrete.

The mayor's current plans include a car park, lifts and a floating walkway, which would lead from the centre of town to a platform right in front of Mr Clooney's villa.

The small public beach next to his villa - which he tried without success to buy two years ago to ensure his privacy - would be paved over to form a piazza, under the plans.

Mr Clooney took the unusual step of attending a meeting of the Laglio protest committee this week to add his voice to the chorus of neighbourhood objection.

How nice, mingling with the little people.

But he denied that it was simply a nimby (not-in-my-backyard) protest.

"It's got to stop," said the actor-turned-civic protester. "I don't want my presence here affecting the local population. The building work is only being done because I live here. And unless it stops I'm going to have to move."

Move to Fwance, George! There's a proposal to put a cap on personal income tax -- a piddling 47% maximum. You could consider it your proud contribution to 'free' healthcare.

The actor has now added his name to the petition to stop the work.

The mayor's definitely going to lose sleep over that.

Manuela Nuti, head of the residents' committee, who described the plans as "invasive for our town, and our lives," said the committee has high hopes for the impact of Clooney's support.

Seems to have the appropriate last name.

She said: "We have over a thousand signatures, but with a signature from George Clooney himself - that has got to be worth another hundred!"

No further confirmation needed.