PrintApril 3, 2008
Obama Gets the Coveted Jane Fonda Endorsement
It may have been Jane Fonda's most difficult decision. Who do I impart the kiss of death to by endorsing them for president?
Jane Fonda, the actress and ardent anti-Vietnam War advocate who visited North Vietnam during those hostilities, has endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president.Fonda, like most Hollywood liberals, was torn between Hillary and Obama.. But in the end, it was probably Obama's anti-war position that tipped the scales in his favor.
There were no formal ceremonies for the endorsement. In fact, the Obama campaign may just be learning about the actress's approval now as word spreads like lit gunpowder via the Internet.
Fonda was eating out last night and exited the restaurant, ignoring as celebrities often do the assembled press contingent. But a video camera was rolling as she approached the street and someone, perhaps just trying to get her to turn around for a picture, shouted out at her back, "Who are you going to vote for?" There was a moment of silence. Then, the actress did turn around toward the cameras, paused and with a smile said simply, "Obama!" Then she got into a car and drove away.
The irony, of course, is that Fonda's most famous moment came when she was in North Viet Nam manning an anti-aircraft gun to shoot down American flyers - an image John McCain might not appreciate since it was those same anti-aircraft batteries that shot him down over Hanoi, leading to his torture and imprisonment.
Ironic convergence is a bitch, ain't it?
