The past few years have seen the rise of the celebrity political commentator. The solidification of that position usually goes something like this:
An actor or singer, someone with superior talent in entertaining, and virtually zero experience or authority in morals, ethics, and/or legal precedent says, sometimes intentionally, sometimes unintentionally, that they have an opinion on a political issue.
Headlines are born, and whether the issue was one they were qualified to speak on or not, they are then part of the conversation, and their political future is set: they’ve stood up for something.
That’s not always the case, however. Some have a failing image that needs a little rejuvenation, and since there’s supposedly no such thing as bad press in the world of celebrity, someone who finds their relevance slipping into the great unknown can become the talk of the town again by taking a loud political stand or being spotted at a rally of some sort.
The exception to that “bad press” rule is, of course, if you’re a conservative. While you can be photographed doing virtually anything except consorting with conservatives, supporting a candidate like President Donald Trump is essentially the kiss of death for any Hollywood regular (or should we say, former Hollywood regular).
No one knows that better than actor James Woods. The actor, who is known for movies such as “White House Down” and “John Q.” has fallen out of vogue with many Hollywood for his support of Trump. Such is not the case, however, for Sean Penn. Like many of his fellow actors, Penn has taken the “high road” and bashed all things Republican on many occasions.
Penn continued his virtuous journey into the hearts of Americans with a recent tweet where he joked that “I like presidents who don’t get Covid-19 (sic).”
The “Dead Man Walking” actor has made no secret of his bias against the president and has been lauded for it by many of his compatriots in the world of entertainment. Like with many so-called “limousine liberals” he advocates for policies and candidates that would have little impact on his charmed life, but deeply affect the future of millions who work in small businesses and even smaller towns across the nation.
Woods, however, has received massive backlash among those in his industry for his support of conservative causes. As deeply as Penn supports the left, Woods supports the right, and like his fellow actor, often takes it to social media.
On Monday, Woods responded to Penn’s comment about the president’s illness, saying “I like a president with brass b****.”
As a frame of reference on Penn’s political loyalties, he had strong comments about the death of Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, the socialist dictator:
“Today the people of the United States lost a friend it never knew it had,” Penn said of Chavez’ death. “And poor people around the world lost a champion … Venezuela and its revolution will endure under the proven leadership of vice president [Nicolas] Maduro.”
Woods, on the other hand, has leveraged his substantial Twitter followship to bring attention to inconsistencies between the left’s words and actions:
“Joe Biden didn’t just compromise with segregationists. He fought for their cause in schools, experts say. // The liberal mainstream media gnats should read this report from just a year ago…” Woods said on Monday.
While the dueling actors’ feud could be chalked up to a professional tiff, the sentiment behind what they’re saying is a mirror of the disagreements tearing Americans apart. While it might not be as close to a 50/50 split as some would have you believe, the most vocal among us have made turning on the news (or computer, or social media app) something for only those of the strongest constitution.
Thankful, America has a strong Constitution and if we are willing to lean on it, we can emerge, sans socialism, and with all three branches of government intact.
