As it turns out, George Clooney has connections with Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. Briefly mentioned in a scathing new Politico article about the failings of Romney's campaign strategist Stuart Stevens -- and blown out to full coverage by Deadline.com's Nikki Finke -- is word that Stevens was the political consultant on the George Clooney film "The Ides of March." As Finke notes, Stevens even appears in a special feature about political consulting on the "Ides of March" Blu-ray release.
Not that Stevens' Hollywood connections are a major secret. He was a writer for the TV series "Northern Exposure," something Fox News noted during a segment on Stevens in August. Interestingly, Fox News -- which called him "the governor's most influential advisor" -- left out that Stevens worked on "The Ides of March" with Clooney.
During that August interview on Fox News, Stevens said he hoped the Republican National Convention would be a "positive part" of branding Romney as a powerful alternative to Obama. Unfortunately, the lasting image of the RNC has become actor Clint Eastwood yelling at an empty chair, a bit of theatrics that Stevens orchestrated. As Politico notes, that's just part of the reason why many power players in the Republican party have soured on Stevens.
That Stevens has connections to Clooney might only weaken his stance. The Oscar-winning actor and President Obama share a strong bond.
"The truth is we got to know each other because of a substantive issue," Obama told ETOnline.com. "He is a terrific advocate on behalf of the people of Darfur, and to the people of Sudan who've been brutalized for a long time. And so when I was a senator -- this was well before I was president -- that was an issue that I was working together on a bipartisan basis, and George, who had traveled there, done documentaries there, and was very well-informed, came to testify in Congress. And so we got to know each other, and he is a good man, and a good friend."
Clooney is also a good soldier for the Obama reelection campaign. In May, Clooney helped raise $15 million for Obama, before adding an additional $500,000 to the coffers in August.
Even Barack Obama's wife, Michelle Obama, is a fan of Clooney.
"He's cute!" the First Lady said to ETOnline.com. "I mean, I'm just saying. I've noticed. Just ... factually. It's a fact."
For more on Stevens' ties to Hollywood, check out Deadline.com.
[Politico via Deadline.com]
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article erroneously referred to Stevens as "campaign manager" in the headline. Matt Rhoades is Romney's campaign manager, and Stevens is Romney's chief strategist.
