Chuck Todd's interview with actor and Hillary Clinton supporterGerogeClooney onNBC NEWS "MEET THE PRESS"
Air Date: April 17, 2016
CHUCK TODD:
And joining me now is actor, George Clooney. Mr. Clooney, welcome to Meet the Press.
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Thank you, Chuck.
CHUCK TODD:
Let me start with dinner you co-hosted on Friday night, a big fundraiser. I know that you have plans for later tonight. Do you look at how much is being raised and I think the (UNINTEL PHRASE) $353,000 a couple to be a co-chair, do you look at it yourself and think, "That's an obscene amount of money?"
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Yes. I think it's an obscene amount of money. I think that, you know, we had some protesters last night when we pulled up in San Francisco and they're right to protest. They're absolutely right. It is an obscene amount of money. The Sanders campaign when they talk about it is absolutely right. It's ridiculous that we should have this kind of money in politics. I agree completely.
CHUCK TODD:
You know, it was interesting. We caught, our camera caught you having a conversation with the protesters last night. What did you say to them?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, it was a funny thing. I went over to try to talk to them and you said I was some corporate chill which, you know, me that's one of the funnier things you could say about me. And their t-shirts said, you know, "You sucked as Batman." And I was like, "Well, you kind of got me on that one."
And then I walked away and that was basically it. But, you know, I think what's important and what I think the Clinton campaign has not been very good at explaining is this and this is the truth: the overwhelming amount of money that we're raising (and it is a lot but the overwhelming amount of the money that we're raising) is not going to Hillary to run for President, it's going to the (UNINTEL) ticket.
It's going to the congressmen and senators to try to take back Congress. And the reason that's important and the reason it's important to me is because we need (I'm a Democrat so if you're a Republican, you're going to disagree but we need) to take the senate back.
Because we need to confirm the Supreme Court justice because that fifth vote on the Supreme Court can overturn Citizens United and get this obscene, ridiculous amount of money out so I never have to do a fundraiser again. And that's why I'm doing it.
CHUCK TODD:
So you don't enjoy doing these fundraisers?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
No, I don't think anybody does. I don't even think politicians do. You know, I'm sure you've covered them before. It's not the most fun thing to do. You know, I spend probably a quarter of my time now raising millions and millions of dollars to fund my foundation which is basically chasing and looking for money that these corrupt politicians all around the world are hiding.
The Panama papers have been actually incredibly helpful. We have forensic accountants so this is all a very big part of things that are important to me. I really want Citizens United. I think it's the worst, one of the worst laws passed, since I've been around.
CHUCK TODD:
You know, Bernie Sanders, obviously you've noted that his campaign was criticizing this and he was asked about your fundraiser specifically and he turned and he backed off and he said this: "It's not a criticism of Clooney; it's a criticism of corrupt finance system or big money interests and it's not Clooney. It's the people who are coming to this event that end up having undue influence over the political process." Do you think people that are coming to your event tonight and went last night, that they think they're gonna get extra access to Hillary Clinton, to a President Clinton?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
No. I actually don't think that's true. I think there is a difference between the Koch brothers and us, you know? The difference is if I succeed, if we succeed in electing an entire Congress which would be quite a success but a Senate and a President, you know, the tax policies that they would enact would probably cost us a lot more money quite honestly.
The Koch brothers would profit if they get their way and that's what, you know, there's no profit for us in this. You know, understanding this: Koch brothers have said that they're gonna spend $900 million not on the presidency but on the Down ticket, on the senators and the congressman and the gubernatorial races and local races. And so our job is to try and counter that in some way.
CHUCK TODD:
You actually have plenty of nice things to say about Bernie Sanders. I think you did an interview with The Guardian where you said you like the issues he was bringing up, you thought he was actually pushing Hillary Clinton in a certain way. I am curious; why did you pick Clinton over Sanders?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, I've worked with Secretary Clinton as Secretary particularly when the Sudan and South Sudan were looking to vote for their own independence and it was an incredibly dangerous time for that country. And there were, you know, hundreds of thousands of people's lives at risk.
And between the Secretary and the Security Council and some of the people on the ground and Kofi Anan and Jimmy Carter and people like that and thousands of people on the ground, we worked very hard to make sure that that didn't happen. She understood it.
She understood the issues even though we don't have any great reason to pay much attention to Sudan. We don't trade with them. We don't get money from them. I found her to know, be knowledgeable and to care about the issues. And we've worked together since then.
And I've been a very big fan of hers. But I want to say this: I really like Bernie. I think what he's saying in this election is important if you're a Democrat. Again to have these conversations, I hope he stays in for the entire election and if he were to win the nomination, I will do whatever I can including if asked a fundraiser like this again to try to get him or her, Hillary, I hope she wins a Senate because honestly we see what happens when a President tries to get their Supreme Court justice confirmed without the Senate.
CHUCK TODD:
You have minced no words about your feelings about Donald Trump. I think you called him a, "xenophobic fascist." I hope I'm quoting you correctly.
GEORGE CLOONEY:
I think you're pretty close.
CHUCK TODD:
Okay. Fair enough. What have your interactions been with him? You ever have any personal interaction?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
I met him once. I've met him once. I was sitting down at a table and he was nice. And we talked a couple of times, I think. And then he went on Larry King and told everybody I was very short. (LAUGHTER OVER PHRASE) "I met you sitting down."
But, no. It's not about that. You know, here's the point about what's going on right now on the other side. Trump and Cruz are making this a campaign of fear. We have to be afraid of everything. We have to be afraid of refugees. We have to be afraid of Muslims.
We have to be afraid of minorities. And the question is and this is an important one, are we really going to be scared of the very things that have made our country great? And if the answer is, "Yes," then we have history to answer to because we're not afraid. We are not a country that is afraid and I refuse to accept that.
CHUCK TODD:
Why do you think fear has been working at least in the Republican party?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Because fear's always worked one way or another. An election of fear has always been one of the great tools of any election. But the reality is we are not the descendants of fearful people. We're not. So no, we're not going to ban Muslims from this country. That's never going to happen.
And we're not going to go back to torture and we're not going to kill the families of terrorists or suspected terrorists because that is not who we are. And if we did, our grandparents and their parents would be ashamed of us.
CHUCK TODD:
I'm curious; Hollywood and a lot of movie studios were very aggressive in putting pressure on the governor of Georgia to veto a bill that would have perhaps made it easier to discriminate gays and lesbians and transgender folks. Some of that same pressure is being applied to North Carolina. Personally do you approve of pressure like that, number one, and what do you make of the North Carolina law?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, I'm a protester from way back. I got arrested in DC a couple years ago with my father protesting. I'm a big believer in protests. I think it matters from the '56 Montgomery bus protest to the apartheid protests that I was a part of when I was a young man.
But I found these to be really effective because these are big corporations that are protesting. And when you have IBM and Walmart of all people and General Electric and people like that coming at you, it affects people. And you can see it because we saw it with Mike Pence in Indiana. We saw it with Jan Brewer in Arizona. I think picking up some great effect and I think the law is ridiculous, of course, you know?
CHUCK TODD:
What would you tell sort of an American who doesn't understand transgender or doesn't understand and is a little concerned and doesn't quite get it?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, I think, you know, first of all we have to get past the idea of thinking of things as, you know, these are all just your choice, you know? If you get past the idea of choosing to be gay or choosing to be transgender or anything else and that you just are, then it suddenly becomes a civil right. And once it's a civil right, it makes a lot of sense, right? Because then all of a sudden what we're talking about is what every single human being has which is the right of dignity and the right of the respect.
CHUCK TODD:
I'd be remiss if I didn't ask. You're a pretty passionate guy about the issues you care about. You're a pretty well read guy. Your father ran for office so I have to ask: have you ever had the inclination to run at any point and could you envision yourself maybe when you're done acting saying, "You know what? I am going to throw myself out there?"
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, first of all, Chuck, if you ask some people, I think I've been done acting for quite some time.
CHUCK TODD:
--the protester that didn't like Batman?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Yes. Well, you know, (UNINTEL PHRASE) got a hundred movies to prove I'm not an actor. But the reality is I watched my father go through the process of running for a seat in Congress in Kentucky. Good time being a Democrat running for Congress in Kentucky.
And it was a brutal experience for all of us, for the whole family. I applaud people who do it. I think it's a very difficult thing to do and I have no interest. I think from where I stand and the things that I work on including the foundation that I get to work on, I don't have to worry about fundraisers or anything else except for the things that I do. I'm beholden to no one and I think it's a much better place to be. I have no interest in being in politics.
CHUCK TODD:
You know, you're obviously a big supporter of Hillary Clinton. I've got a fear that no matter who wins the presidency, we're going to be a polarized country and it's going to be hard for whoever gets elected to govern. What's your advice to her at figuring out how to bring the country together if she happens to be the person elected in this atmosphere?
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Well, I think, you know, Chuck, you know, actors do tend to think pretty highly of themselves but I think the idea that I would be, that my advice to any presidential candidate would matter or would make sense, I think would be kind of ridiculous.
I think that the truth is you're absolutely right because even if the Democrats get the Senate and that's a very reachable thing to get the Senate back, you're not going to get 60 seats. And so again it's still going to be a very polarizing time. And I think we're I and it for a while quite honestly.
CHUCK TODD:
All right. George Clooney, I've kept you long enough. Thanks for coming on. Appreciate it.
GEORGE CLOONEY:
Thank you, Chuck, I appreciate it.
CHUCK TODD:
You got it.
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