Vince Vaughn Trumps up a tweetstorm

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/

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Clint Eastwood: still going strong, still libertarian

Clint Eastwood: Actor, Director, Musician, Politician, and Libertarian · 71 Republic - Brennan Dube:

December 26, 2018 - "Clint Eastwood Jr. was born May 31st, 1930 in San Francisco and his life journey has been remarkable. He will go down as one of Hollywood’s greatest legends and has been in films in each of the last 7 decades. Some of his best hits include ... The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Dirty Harry, Escape from Alcatraz, Million Dollar Baby, and Gran Torino, also having directed the latter two..., Eastwood has ... directed over 30 films and has won several Academy Awards including Best Director on two separate occasions.

"Eastwood has a cemented legacy in America and will forever be remembered for what he has done in Hollywood, but some may not realize just how political Clint Eastwood was.... Eastwood was a very passionate ideological follower of politics and his roots lie in Libertarianism. After being a member of the Republican party ... 1952-1974, Eastwood became an Independent and stayed as one until 1997. Following the 23 years as an Independent, Eastwood then registered as a Libertarian and has apparently been one ever since; he confirmed he was a registered party member in 2009.

"In a 2004 interview with USA Today, Eastwood stated he wasn’t conservative ... but more so libertarian. Eastwood went on to state his life-long belief in leaving everyone alone. On an Ellen interview in 2012, Eastwood reaffirmed his idealistic position in stating his firm belief in social liberalism and fiscal responsibility. Now his rhetoric doesn’t just stay put at just rhetoric, Eastwood has actually held public office.... Eastwood served as Mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea ... 1986-1988 and sat on the California State Park and Recreation Commission....

"Some other celebrities who identify as Libertarians are, actor Vince Vaughn, former WWE wrestler Kane (Glenn Jacobs), Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales, actor Kurt Russell, and American Idol Star Kelly Clarkson....

"Eastwood’s most recent film: The Mule, opened up in theatres on December 14th and it follows the true story of the eldest known drug mule in history. Clint Eastwood not only plays the mule but also directs the film. This is his first lead acting role since his supposed retirement in 2012.... Check out my review of The Mule here."

Read more: https://71republic.com/2018/12/26/eastwood-director-libertarian/
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Some celebrity libertarians (celebritarians)

Are There Any Celebrity Libertarians? | Heavy.com - Stephanie Dube Dwilson:

July 2, 2016 - "Libertarians are often called a fringe group: too small and 'strange' to be taken seriously. But is that characterization accurate? As Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson's poll numbers have recently shown, Libertarians could be a serious contender in the upcoming presidential election. More than a million people voted for the Libertarian presidential nominee in 2012, and with a growing number of people leaving the two-party mentality, the Libertarian party has been growing by leaps and bounds. It isn't widely known that many celebrities have also been vocal in their support for the Libertarian party. So which celebrities have spoken out in favor of the Libertarians? Click through the gallery to find out....

• Penn Jillette: "The way the media tend to present Libertarians is that we’re conservatives, or we’re people with money who want to smoke dope. And it’s really not true at all for me.... The government is the guys with the guns, and we are the people who tell the government what they can do. So in my morality, I shouldn’t be able to tell anyone to do something with a gun that I wouldn’t do myself." - Newsweek....
• Drew Carey: "“I never thought I was a Libertarian until I picked up Reason magazine and realized I agree with everything they had printed..” - From an August 9, 2007 interview with Time....
• Kurt Russell: "“I am by nature Libertarian… don’t tread on me, just leave me alone, that’s all.” - Kurt Russell, 1997 to Talking Pictures Magazine....
• Vince Vaughn: "I would use the term Libertarian to describe my politics. I like the principles of the Constitution and the republic.... Ron Paul woke a lot of people up to the fact that government can’t handle everything for you. Once you start playing that game, where does it stop?"....
• Trey Parker & Matt Stone: ""I think it (Libertarian) is an apt description for me personally, and that has probably seeped into the show. But we never set out to do a Libertarian show." - Matt Stone, in an interview with Reason in 2006....
• Clint Eastwood: ""I've always been a Libertarian. Leave everybody alone. Let everybody else do what they want. Just stay out of everybody else's hair. So I believe in that value of smaller government. Give politicians power and all of a sudden they'll misuse it on ya." - In a 2008 interview with The Guardian....
• Woody Harrelson: ""I don’t believe in government. In other words, I think we can all look after ourselves.... In my opinion, if you don’t actually have a victim who’s a human being, someone who’s been hurt or their property has been hurt, there’s no crime." - 2014 USA Today interview....
• Rufus Wainwright: ""I don't like telling anyone what to do really. I don't feel like it's very polite." — A 2014 interview with The Guardian, when asked what he means when he says he's a "complete Libertarian." 

 Read more: http://heavy.com/news/2016/07/which-celebrities-are-libertarians-who-endorsed-gary-johnson-are-there-names/12/
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True Detective: The most libertarian show on TV?

‘True Detective’: The Most Libertarian Show on TV - The Daily Beast - Nick Gillespie:

July 19, 2015 - "Is there any TV show more flat-out libertarian than Season Two of True Detective? For that matter, is there any TV network airing more flat-out libertarian agitprop than HBO? There you find hour after hour of spectacular, balls-out displays of the inherent incompetence, greed, and corruption of government — especially when it joins forces with crony capitalists....

"Indeed, the True Detective world, filled as it is with crooked cops and perverts in high places and massive, state-funded land grabs and billion-dollar high-speed rail boondoggles, seems ripped right from Ron Paul’s nightmares.

"The characters and the actors are incredible, especially Rachel McAdams as Ani — short for Antigone, the first great libertarian heroine who disobeyed the state in accordance with higher law — Bezzerides, the sexually haunted daughter of a creepy guru and sister to a webcam performer (whose studio is mistaken for a whorehouse by the vice squad in Episode 1). Colin Farrell is a classic crooked cop, Ray Velcoro, who abuses his power for personal reasons but also to line his pockets with graft.

"But the key character is Velcoro’s paymaster, Frank Semyon, whose dirty fingers have been in every racket a town can offer, from drugs to gambling to booze — all of which flourish under the watchful eye and greased palms of law enforcement. (That Frank is played expertly by Vince Vaughn is kind of the cherry on top of all this. Best-known for comedies such as Old School and Dodgeball, Vaughn is an unapologetic libertarian who introduces Ron Paul to adoring crowds, praises Edward Snowden, and stumps for Second Amendment rights like nobody’s business)....

"But here’s the real genius part of True Detective: The corruption on display in True Detective is bigger than Frank, Cesere, Velcoro, or any single individual and is thus uncontainable. It’s systemic and inevitable in a world where politicians, gangsters, and businessmen form a sort of human centipede that’s impossible to disentangle or rein in. When the government controls who gets to build what where and what sorts of permission is needed to run a bar or a restaurant — not to mention a whorehouse — you end up building graft and corruption into everything. That’s the deepest libertarian insight of the show and it infuses every frame."

Read more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/19/the-most-libertarian-network-on-tv.html
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'Hollywood's biggest libertarian' says arm schools

Vince Vaughn, Hollywood’s Biggest Libertarian, Wants More Guns in Schools - The Daily Beast - Asawin Suebsaeng:

June 1, 2015 - "True Detective and Dodgeball star Vince Vaughn thinks American schools need more guns.

"'[Mass shootings have] only happened in places that don’t allow guns,' the 45-year-old actor told the British edition of GQ magazine for its July cover story. 'In all of our schools it is illegal to have guns on campus, so again and again these guys go and shoot up these fucking schools because they know there are no guns there…You think the politicians that run my country and your country don’t have guns in the schools their kids go to? They do. And we should be allowed the same rights. Banning guns is like banning forks in an attempt to stop making people fat. Taking away guns, taking away drugs, the booze, it won’t rid the world of criminality.'

"The actor’s comments put him at odds with much of Hollywood on the gun debate... But Vaughn’s remarks aren’t surprising to anyone even remotely familiar with his politics: He’s Hollywood’s most visible — and vocal — libertarian. (In the same GQ interview, he calls Edward Snowden a 'hero' and says the war on drugs is 'absolutely fucking ridiculous.')

"Vaughn supported Ron Paul’s 2008 and 2012 presidential bids, and pops up at libertarian events now and then....

"In an interview with Playboy that ran in February, the actor hit such favorite libertarian topics as gun rights, big government, the Patriot Act, corporatism, marriage equality, and war.

"'The Patriot Act? Let’s get rid of it,' he told the magazine. 'Undeclared wars, doing away with personal liberties—let’s understand how that has worked out historically to see that it has led to some horrible things. Once our personal liberties are gone, when an American citizen can be pulled out of his house and detained for six months without a trial, where is our country? Once those rights are gone, how do you get them back? Once the government is allowed to listen to you, how do you get that privacy back?'"

Read more: http://gdspoliticalanimal.blogspot.ca/2015/02/actor-vince-vaughn-talks-libertarianism.html
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Actor Vince Vaughn talks libertarianism with Playboy

Vince Vaughn Talks Libertarianism With Playboy - Hit & Run : Reason.com - Ed Krayewski:

February 12, 2015 - "If you read Playboy for the articles, the latest issue features an interview with actor Vince Vaughn, someone that people are sometimes surprised is a libertarian, espousing some of his libertarian views.

"Vaughn [talks] about Ron Paul, who 'woke a lot of people up to the fact that government can’t handle everything for you,' his distrust of centralized power, and his preference for a system where people are left alone 'unless they commit fraud or physical force or take someone’s property.'  'So we should have lawyers running the country?' interviewer David Hochman asks in response. Laws, and courts, are important, Vaughn explains, otherwise 'you can’t leave your house, because you have to protect your stuff'....

"Some more excerpts....

"''Let’s say you’re a major corporation, and I’m the politician and I can write laws. I can say which race gets a benefit and which doesn’t. That could get me some votes. Or I write laws that help your business and limit other businesses from being able to compete with you because they can’t survive all the new programs I’m putting in place'....

"'You have to understand that America today is not capitalistic. The problem is corporatism. The government has too much authority, and it’s dangerous. It stifles productivity and freedom and prosperity and peace'....

"'The Patriot Act? Let’s get rid of it. Undeclared wars, doing away with personal liberties — let’s understand how that has worked out historically to see that it has led to some horrible things. Once our personal liberties are gone, when an American citizen can be pulled out of his house and detained for six months without a trial, where is our country? Once those rights are gone, how do you get them back? Once the government is allowed to listen to you, how do you get that privacy back?'"

Read more: http://reason.com/blog/2015/02/12/vince-vaughn-talks-libertarianism-with-p
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