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People and Politics by Patrick Roberts

Clint Eastwood makes the Democrats day at GOP convention, but not Mitt Romney’s -VIDEO

Posted on Friday, August 31, 2012 at 08:05 AM

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Clint Eastwood speaking at the Republican National Convention on Thursday

When the streamers have all been taken down and the party balloons burst, the memory of Irish American Clint Eastwood’s speech will be paramount in most people’s minds after the Republican convention.

Now I know why the parties insist on such tightly scripted remarks from every speaker before they go live on air to millions of Americans.

Clint, alas, looked like a confused old uncle who had wandered into the convention by accident.

Utah senator Orrin Hatch said he thought the teleprompter went on the blink but it looked to me like Clint had no intent to use it anyway.

Pretending to tell the President of the United States to go f*** himself live on air was a new low for American politics no matter who delivered the lines.

It was a sad moment for a great actor and even better director and whoever gave him the green light to speak should be fired.

It was un-American and downright demeaning and showed no respect for the office of the president.

What are we to tell our kids after such an outburst? That we can imply vulgarisms on national television not once but several times because we disagree with a man’s policies?

Read more: Clint Eastwood's empty chair a perfect metaphor for the 2012 GOP

It was beneath the GOP and beneath Eastwood as well, a man with a stellar reputation - and also very sad.
Speaking to an empty chair was bad enough but some of his lines were downright embarrassing such as:

“What do you mean, ‘Shut up?’”

“What do you want me to tell Romney? I can’t tell him to do that to himself. You’re getting as bad as Biden.”

“You thought the war in Afghanistan was OK. I mean, you thought that was something that was worth doing.

"We didn’t check with the Russians to see how they did there for 10 years. But we did it.”

(Er.. George Bush started the war in Afghanistan and the nation was right behind him after 9/11)

Here’s an example of his mental meanderings, to put it nicely:

“I think if you just kind of stepped aside and Mr. Romney can kind of take over. You can still use the plane. Though maybe a smaller one, not that big gas one when you’re going around to colleges and talking about student loans and stuff like that. You’re an ecological man. Why would you want to drive that truck around? OK.”

“I’m not going to shut up. It’s my turn.”

“I never thought it was a good idea for attorneys to be president anyways… I think it’s maybe time for a businessman. How about that? A stellar businessman.” (Romney is a lawyer also as was Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln)

“OK, you wanna make my day? Alright. I’ll start it. You finish it. Go ahead, make my day.”

I think most Democrats would agree he made theirs.

Here's the clip of Clint Eastwood's speech:

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DanShieldsCLAnn | Sep 07, 2012, 01:22 PM EDT

What the folks in the hall and those of us watching heard, but Eastwood didn't say, was Dirty Harry's previous line. In effect, he was calling out this most disrespectful, inexperienced thug who brings no governing skill, only bullying and denigrating of his opponnents - by name- to the job. Any hard working person listening to him can recognize he's not conversant with hard work and sacrifice. He's a punk, behaves and speaks like a punk, taunts his adversaries instead of listening and seeking to understand them, like a legitimate governing professional and he's as limited as Bush in the level of processing ability he brings to the table. He's a whiner, a slacker and runs crying to the kids who don't yet have the critical evaluative capability to question and require that he prove himself to them. Clint was just asking this snotty, arrogant wise guy: Do you feel lucky, Punk? Well DO Ya?

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BrianO | Sep 05, 2012, 02:12 PM EDT

Ephraim the money did not go to bridges and roads, but to ensure seiu and teacher union employment, with out these fully loaded teams of political soldiers the chances of holding serve in traditionally democratic states would not be possible. Thank you for calling all southern states racist and backward.

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EphraimKibbey | Sep 02, 2012, 04:46 PM EDT

Curiously, the neediest states are the very southern states who keep Confederate flags flying above their official state buildings and whose governers keep threatening to secede. Many of the "DONOR" states citizens thought "How soon can you leave? and "Can we help you pack?" These states often have very low or nonexistant state income taxes and rely on federal aid to support their infrastructure, schools and public servants. It is one thing to be on the dole because of hard times and quite another to be there because of financial irresponsibility. Ask Governer Perry of Texas how he BALANCED that great state's budget!

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EphraimKibbey | Sep 02, 2012, 04:45 PM EDT

@REM1875 - You are correct about their pay coming finally from school boards, municipalities or states however the federal government instituted a little thing called "Revenue Sharing" awhile back. Through it, flush state's citizens pay federal taxes and the federal government gives the money to the state governments based upon need. The state governments then divide the money among entities within their borders based upon need. Much of the stimulus money went to keep state budgets in the black since they did not have road and bridge progects ready.

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McNamara31 | Sep 02, 2012, 02:33 PM EDT

REM1875.. To enter a bit of financial facts to your commentary. Obama has raised the debt by 50 % getting us out of a 1929 (size hole) that the reckless Bush put us in. Previously, Bush took the Clinton surplus ($260 billion) and turned it into an 86% debt increase, and Reagan who the GOP thinks walked on water, increased debt on his watch by 186%. If you still think the dems or liberals are the bad guys when it comes to finances the facts simply don't reflect that.

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REM1875 | Sep 02, 2012, 11:24 AM EDT

EK nice try but if your waiting on the federal govt to rescue you you will have a heck of a long wait. Despite what the dems told you DMV, teachers, firemen, police, and emt are paid by state and local taxes. It's their unions that seem to get federal money so they can give it back to the dems.

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REM1875 | Sep 02, 2012, 11:05 AM EDT

Dear poor liberals It's not your money. Robin Hood stole from the govt and the church. While I am sure you would love to see the church robbed you'd squeal like stuck pigs at the idea of someone stealing from civil servants and giving it back to the middle class. (The poor and disabled begged around the churches in the center of a city so you can bet he didn't stick around there to give to the poor and disabled) The rich (mostly small businesses) already pay the lions share of the taxes how much more did you wish to steal from them? Maybe we should stop spending? (buying votes for the dems with our money)

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patrickesq | Sep 02, 2012, 10:59 AM EDT

Thank you JimmyJK for a real vision and realization of what the Republican policies will bring us. The USA already spend more on the implements of war than all the other countries of the world combined. Yet Mr. Romney thinks we need t spend so more to keep the big corporate warriors of our industrial-military complex happy and satiated with our taxpayers money, albeit without the 1 percenters having to pay a penny more.

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hollabackgurl | Sep 01, 2012, 10:59 PM EDT

We learned this week that if you just work hard and play by the rules you will make yourself marvelously rich. That was true in Charles Dicken's time and it's true now. Bah-haw-haw-haw-haw-haw!

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McNamara31 | Sep 01, 2012, 08:47 PM EDT

Oldwildrover How about "Romney 2016"? A movie can be "spun" to make a man look like a hero, or a villain, for the right price.And God knows, the GOP has the billions to spend through direct and indirect channels to make that happen.

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BrianO | Sep 01, 2012, 06:23 PM EDT

Jimmyjk, You believe too much of the rhetoric from the left. If the premise that government should grow and confiscate the riches money is true lets see who benefits. The rich will find a way to protect themselves, the middle class will have no incentive to become rich and place as many barriers to entry as possible to protect themselves, the poor will most likely grow and more and more less productive people who have less resources to educate themselves and will demand benefits. The only winners will be the Ruling class who will ensure their well being. Even if my scenario is false as I'm sure you would argue, What happens when the government grows larger and more powerful and down the road a president is voted in that is completely against everything you stand for, he will then be able to use this all powerful government against you. I argue against the leftists because I fear tyranny, The more power left in the hands of the citizenry the less likely this will occur.

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BrianO | Sep 01, 2012, 06:08 PM EDT

Briano

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BrianO | Sep 01, 2012, 06:06 PM EDT

Ek, what a bunch of hooey, your premise is wrong. Money made by the rich, semi rich, wanna be rich, and poor, is money earned by each. What permits a poor person from rising to better conditions, certainly not government dependency. Ask any florist, baker, cobbler, etc what they think of the department of revenue or the IRS and they will not say anything positive. All you who live off the teet of government don't have to worry about the IRS questioning your witholding deposits, depreciation schedules, sales tax collections. Whats really nice about the very loving agents of the IRS is they are robotic about their actions, like talking to a wall. But don't fret if Obama is re elected the IRS will be increased to enforce obamadontcare, so all you firemen, police, dpw workers, you too will get to fear if you dotted your i's and crossed your t's under penalty of perjury and the full force of the federal government.

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Oldwildrover | Sep 01, 2012, 06:04 PM EDT

I say again.....go see the movie "2016 Obama's America". It's an eye opener. It will help you decide who to vote for...

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JimmyJK | Sep 01, 2012, 05:30 PM EDT

well said EphraimKibbey! Thank you for hope

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