Now, Eastwood is back and as serious as can be in his call to "fire" Obama after four years of so-called failed policies.
The last time Eastwood hit the airwaves with a sober message of importance, he was hawking Chryslers and it was Halftime in America. There was conjecture during the Super Bowl when that spot appeared that a political message was embedded in the 2-minute spot. There's no doubt this time where the actor stands.
Michelle Obama had her moment in the spotlight of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday night. Ann Romney brought her case - and her husband's story - to the podium last week at the Republican National Convention.
Both women have been lauded for their talks with America. But did one or the other make a better speech? Watch below, then vote below.
While politics, particularly in this day and age, can draw out the most passionate of feelings from the American electorate, it's apparently nothing compared to Honey Boo Boo.
At least that's the case if you judge these things by TV ratings. And really, what other fair way is there to judge these things.
The Hollywood Reporter points out that for all the time and effort spent worrying over, broadcasting and analyzing the goings-on at the Republican National Convention, a reality show spinoff about a redneck family and their beauty pageant daughter smoked the cable outlets in the ratings.
Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, TLC's controversial reality show about a self-proclaimed "redneck" family and their Toddlers and Tiaras daughter, hit another ratings high Wednesday night.
The fourth episode of Honey Boo Boo pulled in just shy of 3 million viewers at 10 p.m., according to Nielsen overnight ratings, growing 30 percent from last week's 2.3 million haul.
In the demo, Honey Boo Boo did even better. The half-hour series' showing among adults 18-49 bested all other cable outings for the night -- including coverage of the Republican National Convention -- to pull a 1.3 rating.
Of course, had the organizers thought to include more of the bizarre content that Clint Eastwood mustered up for his surprise visit to the podium Thursday night, perhaps there would have been a fighting chance against the force of nature that is Honey Boo Boo. Or maybe they could just sign her up for a speech - call it outreach to women voters.
If you've missed the talents of the family, a look at Honey's world:
Of course, it could be the ratings were not just affected by Honey Boo Boo. There was another force of nature to hit the convention in the form of Hurricane Isaac.
Ratings for the final two nights of the Republican convention were down quite a bit from 2008, declining by about 30 percent overall.
The ratings decline should not really be a surprise. Whereas, in 2008, Senator John McCain announced his running mate, Sarah Palin, just a few days before the convention, making her a national sensation, Mitt Romney rolled out his choice of Representative Paul D. Ryan three weeks ago, perhaps limiting the buildup to Tampa, Fla.
The convention was also shortened by, and had to compete with, Hurricane Isaac. And the security in and around Tampa was airtight, limiting protests and distractions -- but perhaps also the spontaneity and newsworthiness of the event.
TAMPA--Clint Eastwood delivered a loopy and rambling speech--more like a stand-up act-- Thursday night at the Republican Convention--as he tried to make the case to elect Mitt Romney.
Tweeted Chicago Sun-Times critic Roger Ebert, "Clint, my hero, is coming across as sad and pathetic. He didn't need to do this to himself. It's unworthy of him."
Eastwood's name leaked out earlier Thursday as the surprise "mystery guest."
When he took to the stage--at a convention where everything is highly scripted and speeches vetted--Eastwood riffed.
"Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, what's a movie tradesman doing out here? You know, they're all left-wingers out there, left of Lenin. At least that's what people think, but that's not really the case. There is a lot of conservative people, a lot of moderate people, Republicans, Democrats in Hollywood. It's just that conservative people, by the nature of the word itself, are -- play it a little more close to vest. They don't go around hot- dogging it."
In this July 17, 1980, file photo, Republican presidential candidate Ronald Reagan stands before a cheering Republican National Convention in Detroit's Joe Louis Arena. | File
What do Ronald Reagan and Tupac have in common? Right, they both won't be at the Republican National Convention tonight. Not even as holograms.
Yahoo News reports that plans to apparently up the energy level of the RNC by having a hologram Regan speak in the closing night have not come to pass.
OK, it was never "officially" planned for the convention, but still . . .
"It wasn't officially going to be part of the convention," Tony Reynolds, founder of crowdsourcing website A KickIn Crowd, told Yahoo News in a phone interview Thursday. "It was going to be outside of the convention at the Lakeland Center."
Why introduce Reagan? Isn't there enough firepower in the big tent this week? Well, Paul Ryan aside, maybe not . . .
"At the time he hadn't chosen Paul Ryan, so I think they were a little worried about his energy," Reynolds said. "Even in a hologram form I think Reagan's going to beat a lot of people in terms of communicating."
TAMPA--The Mitt Romney campaign confirmed this morning a mystery guest appearing on the final night of the Republican National Convention--and multiple news outlets are reporting it is actor Clinton Eastwood.
Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) outside the Clearwater, Fl. hotel where the Illinois delegation is staying for the Republican National Convention.
(Video by Lynn Sweet)
TAMPA--Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) on Thursday said the Democrats are wasting their time attacking Mitt Romney for his tenure at Bain Capital. Millions of dolllars have been spent on Bain ads and "it has not had an impact for them," Roskam said. Romney accepts the nomination on Thursday night---and his time at Bain will be featured at the final night of the convention.
On Wednesday, President Obama sat down for a virtual town hall on Reddit, the social media news and sharing site.
In his r/IAmA chat, he took on a variety of questions, from money in politics, to his toughest decisions to net freedom concerns.
Here's a sample of the fare:
[-]gobearss 1337 points 18 hours ago
ow do you balance family life and hobbies with, well, being the POTUS?
[-]PresidentObamaObama[S] 2137 points 17 hours ago
t's hard - truthfully the main thing other than work is just making sure that I'm spending enough time with michelle and the girls. The big advantage I have is that I live above the store - so I have no commute! So we make sure that when I'm in DC I never miss dinner with them at 6:30 pm - even if I have to go back down to the Oval for work later in the evening. I do work out every morning as well, and try to get a basketball or golf game in on the weekends just to get out of the bubble. Speaking of balance, though, I need to get going so I'm back in DC in time for dinner. But I want to thank everybody at reddit for participating - this is an example of how technology and the internet can empower the sorts of conversations that strengthen our democracy over the long run. AND REMEMBER TO VOTE IN NOVEMBER - if you need to know how to register, go to Gottaregister.com. By the way, if you want to know what I think about this whole reddit experience - NOT BAD!
Meanwhile, Mitt Romney's camp will be taking to Twitter Thursday when he makes his acceptance speech for the Republican nomination for president. It's not unusual that politicians hit the Twittersphere anymore, but the way Romney's campaign is doing it is new - via a sponsored, or purchased, trending topic hashtag.
