Parse Eastwood

Politics & Elections
1

I’ll take the righties seriously when they claim that Eastwood’s schtick at the convention wasn’t so bad, was pretty good, was hilarious, etc., but I want to dissect it to find out why they feel it wasn’t a disaster, which I (and many non-Romneyites) felt it was.

Let’s start with the concept of the empty chair. To me, “debating an empty chair” has a very specific meaning. I’m pretty sure the only instance of it I’ve ever seen is a candidate (Robert Kennedy, in my memory) inviting an opponent (Gene McCarthy) to a debate (or both of them being invited, I guess) and when McCarthy didn’t show up, Kennedy “debated” McCarthy’s empty chair–i.e., he gave a speech, or answered questions, with McCarthy’s chair sitting there as a symbol of his refusul to debate. No imaginary questions, no faux-shocked reponses to the empty chair unheard comments–just RFK taking up his own time and McCarthy’s time as well. That’s what an empty chair means to me.

(I could be wrong, but that’s my 44-year-old memory of the spring of 1968–I’ll check it out–maybe it was McCarthy debating RFK’s empty chair, but that’s how it was used, as I recall.)

So that’s the first thing I’m asking–can you justify Eastwood’s “debate” with an empty chair as a symbol of --what? That Obama didn’t have the guts to appear on the RNC platform? That Obama is reluctant to discuss issues? That Obama spews nonsense? That Obama curses at his opponents?

Next–the cursing. By pretending that his imaginary Obama had mostly vulgar, bar-room off-color remarks regarding Romney, Eastwood was establishing what? That Obama’s presidency was marked by undignified gutter-behavior? I’d think that even Romney advocates would concede that Obama’s been pretty dignified and self-controlled in his comportment, and I’d think that they (if they were sensible) would be grudgingly grateful that he hasn’t behaved liked the manic, uncontrolled street-jiving Negro they seem to believe he is just below the surface. But can you tell me what Eastwood was mocking here exactly, in attributing to his Obama little beyond vulgar and ignorant ranting?

That’s for starters. There’s much else to parse, if anyone is interested in taking Eastwood’s tirade semi-seriously.

2

Might as well parse Colbert. Clint Eastwood’s speech had only two purposes:

  1. To put Clint’s face in front of a prime time audience. He’s genuinely an icon, so who knows, maybe he swings some voters.

  2. He wanted to be funny. It was an awkward, ad libbed comedy routine.

The liberal reaction to Eastwood reminds me of the liberal reaction to Saturday Night Live’s Obama sketch from late 2009 where they joked about the fact that Obama had yet to do squat. This actually spawned freakin’ FACT CHECKING from CNN.

3

Okay, but beyond, “He’s just a big lovable goofball”?

Or are you saying it was a great move to put a big dada-driven comedy schtick into your primetime moment? Because if that’s it, I disagree, and wish you do much more of this stuff during your campaign.

Was there any meaningful substance there? If so, that’s what I’d like to discuss here.

4

I don’t think the empty chair was a bad concept so much as it was badly executed. If they had hired some writers to making coherent points with some scripted applause lines, then had Eastwood rehearse it so it wasn’t so cringeworthy, it could have succeeded. But the last minute improv was a terrible choice on the part of the event planners, with or without the empty chair.

5

Symbolizing what exactly? What was the point of the empty chair? Obama’s cowardice? His inability to articulate his position? His what, exactly?

6

The original plan was for Eastwood to shake his fist at a cloud, but then they realized the speech was to be given indoors.

7

All I can turn up, so far, is Ted Kennedy debating an empty chair when President Carter refused to debate him.LINK
So Eastwood isn’t the only senile white man this week.

8

Eastwood’s not senile. See how well anyone speaks when they have to talk for 11 minutes without a script. If he was senile he wouldn’t be able to star in movies or direct them.

9

So who’s the dumb ass that wanted to put an unscripted speech in such a prominent time slot? He should have been like Romney and read the speech off a teleprompter.

10

That much I agree with. It was dumb scheduling. I’m guessing eastwood was a last minute addition and he pitched his idea and they said, “Okay, go for it.” Was it well executed? No.

Like I said before, I think they just wanted Clint Eastwood in prime time and wouldn’t have cared much if he farted “Sentimental Journey”.

11

I’m not nearly as good as I used to be, when I could lecture for fifty minutes at a clip and give verbatim quotes with page references from memory, but you’re describing a pretty easy task for me, which I still do several times per week, when I address a class full of challenging, inquisitive college students, and often lecture for ten minutes or so without a script, in (I think) complete sentences and coherent ideas. Eastwood? Not so much, as far as I could tell, neither the ability to form complete sentences nor coherent ideas.

12

I was hoping that this thread would be an attempt to explain what exactly Eastwood said. When I watch the clips, I start cringing and feeling so bad for him that I have a hard time hanging in between all the breaks and pauses to know just what he is trying to say.

I do think Obama may have a great line to use in a debate with Romney now. Something about Romney finding out it’s not as easy when Obama’s actually in the chair. Yeah, it needs work. I wouldn’t try to ad lib it in front of millions of people.

13

I’m still hoping that one of these “HE WAS HILARIOUS! PERFECT!! 10 STARS! HE SKEWERED OBAMA!” Pubbies eventually responds to my invitation. I’d really like to know WTF they thought he was trying to do.

14

I don’t get this, either. Eastwood could have come out on TV and puked and that would have been good for the Romney folks? Come out and read from the telephone directory? Come out and told dirty limericks?

Or is it just you’re at a total loss to explain it, too?

15

Just spitballing here, but something like empty promises, empty policies, empty dreams could be built into a strawman monologue. It’s doable, but not off the cuff.

16

Well, there’s your problem.

If by “there” you mean the Republican National Convention, then no, there wasn’t. When was the last time there was any meaningful substance at either party’s convention? They are infomercials that get mistaken for news.

17

I didn’t see the speech, but I did watch Bill Maher’s show last night. He gave Clint props for doing a good job as a stand-up comedian, which he noted is a pretty tough thing to do. And Maher is no Romney fan. If the audience ate it up, then it was a success.

Clint is old enough and rich enough that he’s going to say whatever the hell he damn well pleases.

18

I worry that if folks keep harping on about horrible this was, the right will start accusing the left of not respecting their elders.

19

Here’s my theory.

They WERE going to have Trump fire the impersonator and when that was guessed in advance either Trump had a tantrum or they pulled the video and were left to fill a spot.

THEN they end up with Eastwood for the spot and still want to ‘fire’ Obama in some way but no longer have the impersonator and think… Hey… an empty chair works. Then you can do the “make my day” thingy or something. They throw some campaign talking points at him and push him out on the stage.

That goes down in flames

The campaign immediately claim Eastwood winged it on his own and they had noooo idea of what he was doing out there.

20

Bill Maher is a total asshole sometimes, and last night was one of those times. He was referring to it as a comedy bit, as improv, and he said that Eastwood pulled it off, a total pro.

And except for the part about the incoherent mumbling, the lame “pretend vulgarities,” the muffed lines, the total incoherent message, and the “get-me-the-fuck-out-of-here” improvised clichefest of an ending (WHAT was he asking someone to do to make his day, and WHO was he asking it of?), Maher was right.

If Maher ever perform that poored, or made that little sense, I think he’d show the good judgment to admit, “I bombed. Just couldn’t get it together out there. I fucked up.”

No one’s disputing Eastwood’s age or his wealth, John, just whether it made any sense to trot a old rich guy out there to babble and make a fool of himself and, by short extension, his party.