Clint Eastwood's Speech at Republican Convention Gets Response From Obama
Actor Clint Eastwood quipped about President Barack Obama's term in office Thursday evening at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, and in response Obama made a joke of his own.
Eastwood's speech received mixed reviews, with supporters calling it "refreshing," with others describing it as "long-winded." Most agreed, however, that it was certainly "unique."
In his speech on the evening of Aug. 30, Eastwood spoke to an imaginary Obama, who was represented by an empty chair next to the podium. A teleprompter was also at the podium, a reference apparently to the president's frequent use of one during remarks.
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"Mr. President, how do you handle promises that you have made when you were running for election, and how do you handle them? I mean, what do you say to people?" Eastwood, 82, questioned the phantom president.
"They are always devils advocating this and bifurcating this and bifurcating that. You know all that stuff. But, I think it is maybe time -- what do you think -- for maybe a businessman. How about that?" Eastwood continued, referencing his support for Mitt Romney as president.
"And I think it's that time. And I think if you just step aside and Mr. Romney can kind of take over. You can maybe still use a plane," he added, speaking to the invisible Obama.
President Obama himself partook in the joke, tweeting a photo of himself sitting in the Commander-in-Chief chair with the caption "this seat's taken," evidently referencing Eastwood's shtick of talking to an empty seat.
There were mixed reactions to Eastwood's speech, with some saying the "Dirty Harry" actor stole the show from Romney, and others saying his speech was long-winded, obscure and "senile."
"That was the weirdest thing I've ever seen at a political convention in my entire life, and it will be the weirdest thing I've ever seen if I live to be 100," anchor Rachel Maddow of MSNBC said of Eastwood's speech.
"I can't believe I just watched Clint Eastwood turn into somebody's DRUNK UNCLE HARRY on the stage of the GOP RNC. He humiliated himself," tweeted "Today" show contributor Star Jones.
Others, however, called Eastwood's presence at the Republican National Convention, where Romney officially accepted the nomination as the party's presidential candidate, a refreshing glimpse of the conservative celebrity icon.
The Washington Post said Eastwood's speech was the "boldest backing of a Republican candidate by a Hollywood A-lister in a generation or more."
Ann Romney told "CBS This Morning" that Eastwood was "a unique guy and he did a unique thing last night."
Viewers also caught wind of Eastwood's speech. Within minutes after Eastwood's speech, the Twitter trend "invisibleobama" had been retweeted at least 6,000 times.
Thursday marked the last night of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., where keynote speakers included New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Republican vice president nominee Paul Ryan and former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice.
