Last of the Hollywood libertarians: why the outrage over Vince Vaughn's handshake with Trump?- The Telegraph [UK]:
January 14, 2019 - "On Monday night, Twitter was sent a-flutter after photographs and video footage showed [film actor Vince] Vaughn enthusiastically catching up with President Trump and the First Lady at a college football game in New Orleans. Vaughn was spotted shaking hands and briefly sitting next to the Trumps to engage in an animated conversation, before carrying on with his evening.
"When video taken by US journalist Timothy Burke made its way to Twitter, with the caption, 'I'm very sorry to have to share this video with you. All of it, every part of it', it swiftly gained thousands of views and such a polarised response it was difficult to know who was serious, who was mocking, and which side of the spectrum those involved occupied....
"But those shocked by Vaughn's enthusiasm for Trump might be even more alarmed to discover that this is only the latest example of the actor expressing his right-wing views. Vaughn's ascent in Hollywood was always matched with an increase in volume from the actor about his political opinions – a rarity in the entertainment industry, where stars tend to keep such matters brushed under the carpet and those that do speak tend to veer to the left.
"[I]n 2004, [Vaughn] was shut out of a conference for young Republicans in Washington DC, ... while filming Wedding Crashers ... [b]ecause the gatekeepers weren't convinced that Vaughn was actually a Republican, and was trying to come in for a joke....
"[O]ver the next decade ... Vaughn developed a budding friendship with presidential candidate Ron Paul.... They attended barbecues together and bonded over libertarian views, with Paul's campaign chairman describing Vaughn as 'a great guy who loves liberty'. In 2009, the politician was invited to the premiere of Vaughn's film Couples Retreat. By 2011, Vaughn was officially campaigning for him....
"[Following] Paul's 2012 presidential campaign, Vaughn pivoted back to media, where he buddied up with Fox News commentator Glenn Beck ... to co-produce The Pursuit of Truth, a reality television series. A kind of X Factor for documentary makers ... [it] aired on Beck's own television network, The Blaze, in 2013 and lasted just one season.
"In 2015 [Vaughn] told Playboy that he preferred taxation the way it was before 1913, 'when locally you had sales taxes and property taxes. That seems ethical to me.... the federal government looking into your books to decide what to take from you, that feels wrong.'
"Also in 2015, Vaughn took to the lectern while giving a keynote address at a Libertarian conference at UCLA to explain his approach to drug legalisation: 'If someone’s parents don’t have money they are going to go to prison and have a life wasted. If someone’s parents do have money, they go to rehab. You can’t really go after people that are committing real crimes – forceful crimes, violent crimes – because [courts AND prisons] are so inhabited with people that were using drugs.'
"Later that year Vaughn won the attention of the NRA after expressing his support for gun possession in a profile in GQ [Gentleman's Quarterly]....
"Vaughn's Trumpian handshake ... is one of the first headlines he's won in several years. Perhaps it's the start of a whole new eyebrow-raising phase of his career."
Read more: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2020/01/14/last-hollywood-libertarians-outrage-vince-vaughns-handshake/
'via Blog this'
January 14, 2019 - "On Monday night, Twitter was sent a-flutter after photographs and video footage showed [film actor Vince] Vaughn enthusiastically catching up with President Trump and the First Lady at a college football game in New Orleans. Vaughn was spotted shaking hands and briefly sitting next to the Trumps to engage in an animated conversation, before carrying on with his evening.
"When video taken by US journalist Timothy Burke made its way to Twitter, with the caption, 'I'm very sorry to have to share this video with you. All of it, every part of it', it swiftly gained thousands of views and such a polarised response it was difficult to know who was serious, who was mocking, and which side of the spectrum those involved occupied....
"But those shocked by Vaughn's enthusiasm for Trump might be even more alarmed to discover that this is only the latest example of the actor expressing his right-wing views. Vaughn's ascent in Hollywood was always matched with an increase in volume from the actor about his political opinions – a rarity in the entertainment industry, where stars tend to keep such matters brushed under the carpet and those that do speak tend to veer to the left.
"[I]n 2004, [Vaughn] was shut out of a conference for young Republicans in Washington DC, ... while filming Wedding Crashers ... [b]ecause the gatekeepers weren't convinced that Vaughn was actually a Republican, and was trying to come in for a joke....
"[O]ver the next decade ... Vaughn developed a budding friendship with presidential candidate Ron Paul.... They attended barbecues together and bonded over libertarian views, with Paul's campaign chairman describing Vaughn as 'a great guy who loves liberty'. In 2009, the politician was invited to the premiere of Vaughn's film Couples Retreat. By 2011, Vaughn was officially campaigning for him....
"[Following] Paul's 2012 presidential campaign, Vaughn pivoted back to media, where he buddied up with Fox News commentator Glenn Beck ... to co-produce The Pursuit of Truth, a reality television series. A kind of X Factor for documentary makers ... [it] aired on Beck's own television network, The Blaze, in 2013 and lasted just one season.
"In 2015 [Vaughn] told Playboy that he preferred taxation the way it was before 1913, 'when locally you had sales taxes and property taxes. That seems ethical to me.... the federal government looking into your books to decide what to take from you, that feels wrong.'
"Also in 2015, Vaughn took to the lectern while giving a keynote address at a Libertarian conference at UCLA to explain his approach to drug legalisation: 'If someone’s parents don’t have money they are going to go to prison and have a life wasted. If someone’s parents do have money, they go to rehab. You can’t really go after people that are committing real crimes – forceful crimes, violent crimes – because [courts AND prisons] are so inhabited with people that were using drugs.'
"Later that year Vaughn won the attention of the NRA after expressing his support for gun possession in a profile in GQ [Gentleman's Quarterly]....
"Vaughn's Trumpian handshake ... is one of the first headlines he's won in several years. Perhaps it's the start of a whole new eyebrow-raising phase of his career."
'via Blog this'
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