Sean Penn endorses Kucinich for US President
Sean Penn at Cannes Film Festival, 2000.Academy Award winning actor and political activist Sean Penn has just thrown his
support in the 2008 US Presidential election behind Dennis Kucinich.
In a San Francisco speech described by his PR people as "a blistering indictment of political leaders and an impassioned
endorsement of Presidential proportions," Penn threw his support behind the lesser known Democratic candidate.
The Kucinich campaign did not vet the speech.
"Dennis Kucinich, who with the minimal time allotted him, once again rose up beyond the sound bite and put principal
ahead of party; argued policy rather than politeness. He has been the dominant voice of integrity on issues of trade,
labor, education, environment, health, civil liberties, and the one endlessly determined voice of peace.
But is he too short? Does his haircut not appeal? Is he not loyal enough to a cowardly democratic platform? Does he not
appeal to the cult of personality?"
"And what if the answer is yes?"
"What if Dennis Kucinich, the most deserving and noble of candidates, the most experienced in issues of policy and the
least willing to play into the politics of personal power? What if we can't elect a man simply on the basis of the best
ideas, the most courage, and the most selfless service? What does it say about our country when we can't rally the
voices of the common good to support a man, like our troops, who would die for us, who would die for our constitution?"
Other recent celebrity endorsements in the race include Oprah Winfrey for Barack Obama, Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling
for John McCain, Harry Belafonte endorsed John Edwards, and both 50 Cent and Barbra Streisand behind Hillary Clinton.
Chuck Norris has backed Mike Huckabee in a high profile, comedic endorsement ad.
Penn first became politically active in October 2002, when he spent $56,000 on a full-page ad in the Washington Post,
asking President George W. Bush to end "a cycle of violence". He visited Iraq briefly in December of that year, Iran in
2005 as a journalist, and met with Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez for two hours in 2007.
Penn went to New Orleans to "aid rescue workers" after Hurricane Katrina; many questioned how of a liability an
untrained worker, especially when his boat sprang a leak, would be. One website commented "just showed up with his
entourage and a personal photographer with the apparent intent of just wandering around looking for a good photo op."
SOURCES
* Rachel Dry "The Trail: Celebrity Endorsement Watch". Washington Post, December 7, 2007
* Sean Penn "An Open Letter to the President of the United States of America.". The Washington Post, 18 October 2002
* Sean Penn "Actor Sean Penn On the Occasion of His Visit to Iraq". t r u t h o u t, December 15, 2002
* Sean Penn "SEAN PENN IN IRAN". San Francisco Chronicle, August 22, 2005
* Associated Press "Sean Penn Applauds as Venezuela's Chavez Bashes Bush". FOX News, August 3, 2007
* Al Barger "Sean Penn's Katrina PR Stunt Springs A Leak". Blog Critics, September 05, 2005
* Retrieved from "http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Sean_Penn_endorses_Kucinich_for_US_President"
ENDS