No one does it quite like Bill Clinton. The 42nd U.S. President offered a rousing endorsement of Barack Obama’s record last night at the Democratic National Convention, holding the audience captive for over 48 minutes and proving that even a quadruple bypass can’t slow him down. Whether you agree with Clinton’s political views or not, his DNC speech was folksy, detailed and compelling, offering a more cogent defense of Obama’s tenure in the White House than its current occupant himself has ever given.
An anonymous individual or group claims to have obtained “all available” tax returns associated with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. The alleged hackers claim to have accessed them via computers in the Franklin, Tenn., office of professional services firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers. An anonymous posting on a file sharing website claims PwC was hacked ; the same site has been used to boast of other high-profile corporate hacks. How’d they pull it off, allegedly? The posting states: “[ Romney’s tax returns ] were taken from the PWC office 8/25/2012 by gaining access to the third floor via a gentleman working on the 3rd floor of the building.” Bribes go a long way, apparently. President Obama’s 2012 election opponent has faced calls to release his tax forms prior to 2010. The former CEO of Bain Capital has refused to do so. Wonder if this will change his mind. After “all 1040 tax forms for Romney were copied,” the perpetrators claim, having sent Mitt’s tax returns “to Democratic and GOP offices in the county.” “A scanned signature image for Mitt Romney from the 1040 forms were scanned and included with the packages,” which are almost entirely encrypted. That’s where the fun part comes in. The group claims it will “release all available files to the public on the 28 of September, 2012,” unless someone coughs up $1 million … in Bitcoins. The purported hacker(s) issued this threat to PwC: “All major news media outlets are going to be sent an encrypted copy of the most recent tax years that your company had on file since you did not have them all in a convenient electronic form.” “The years before 2010 will be of great interest to many. If the parties interested do not want the encrypted key released to the public to unlock these documents on September 28 of this year then payment will be necessary.” “The deal is quite simple. Convert $1,000,000 USD to Bitcoins (Google if if you need a lesson on what Bitcoin is) using the various markets available out in the world for buying.” “Transfer the Bitcoins gathered to the Bitcoin address listed below. It does not matter if small amounts or one large amount is transferred, as long as the final value of the Bitcoins is equal to $1,000,000 USD at the time when it is finished.” “The keys to unlock the data will be purged and what ever is inside the documents will remain a secret forever. Failure to do this before September 28, the entire world will be allowed to view the documents with a publicly released key to unlock everything.” “Bitcoin Address to Stop Release: [redacted]” “At the same time, the other interested parties will be allowed to compete with you. For those that DO want the documents released will have an different address to send to.” “If $1,000,000 USD is sent to this account first; then the encryption keys will be made available to the world right away. So this is an equal opportunity for the documents to remain locked away forever or to be exposed before the September 28 deadline.” “Who-ever is the winner does not matter to us.” Romney is locked in a dead heat with Obama with two months to go before the election. One way or another, the tax return issue keeps rearing its ugly head. Should Mitt release more tax returns? Who are you voting for in November?
We just had to share this. Michelle made us all proud tonight! and we’re sure her hubby POTUS is still grinning. “I’m going to try to not let them see their daddy cry because when Michelle starts talking, I start getting all misty,” Obama said at A rally earlier Tuesday in Norfolk, Va. What a Mighty Good Man. Source Images via Flickr/Twitter
This dude needs to sit the eff down. Hank Williams, Jr., keeps talking isht about Obama during his concerts and surprise; his fans are eating it up! Hank Williams Jr. repeated his anti-Obama tirade at a concert in Texas on Sunday. Performing at the Stockyards Music Festival, the country singer went on an extended rant against the president. “We’ve got a Muslim for a President who hates cowboys, hates cowgirls, hates fishing, hates farming, loves gays, and we hate him,” Williams Jr. bellowed. As the Dallas Sun reported, the crowd responded with a loud cheer. This is the second time in recent weeks the singer has used heated language when describing his distaste for the president. A late August concert featured Williams Jr. doing the same bit, though the dig at homosexuals appears to be a new addition to his schtick. Hanky’s already lost his NFL gigs…if he keeps talkin’ isht he’s going to lose even more. Source Images via WENN
With the out-of-nowhere success of 2016: Obama’s America , the nation could finally have a conservative counterpart to Michael Moore . I say the nation rather than the Republicans, because a balanced box office is good for us all, at least as a reminder of our right to oppose the current government and make a profit in doing so. Similar to Moore’s release of Fahrenheit 9/11 during the summer of 2004, author-turned-filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza offers a one-sided, first-person documentary that challenges the incumbent President during his campaign for re-election. Unlike his liberal predecessor, however, D’Souza, who co-directs with writer/producer John Sullivan ( Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed ), doesn’t have much to fall back on in the way of entertainment value and so only delivers a transient attraction for the anti-Obama crowd. You could say that a film like 2016 shouldn’t be entertaining, and maybe it is true that the left’s overdependence on jokesters and satire have hurt their efforts in the past. But while Fahrenheit 9/11 might not have influenced enough voters eight years ago, it remains a popular work of cinema in its own right primarily because of Moore’s appeal to a certain audience both personally and stylistically. D’Souza is neither engaging as a character nor as a storyteller, but even worse here is his lack of intensity. As a pressing piece of propaganda, the film could use a louder voice and edgier tone. To truly be an effective Moore equivalent, frankly, D’Souza could stand to be more of a nuisance. Basing the documentary on his best-selling books The Roots of Obama’s Rage and Obama’s America: Unmaking the American Dream , D’Souza, retains a very subjective angle for his exploration of the President’s true identity and political motives. In fact, before really even addressing the titular subject, the filmmaker takes the first portion of the film to set up his own biographical relevance, which aside from his being born outside the U.S. (oh, hush) corresponds quite uncannily as a way of comparing his own background to Barack Obama’s and then raising the question of how they ended up on such contrary idealistic paths. Through interpretation of passages from Obama’s book Dreams From My Father and an interview with a psychologist, D’Souza comes up with a thesis involving the President’s daddy issues. Paralleling the last administration’s critics, 2016 at times comes off like a slightly deeper kin to Oliver Stone’s W. without the fun of caricaturistic portrayals. More complex than Bush’s supposed need to make his still-living father proud, the deal with Obama is that he’s apparently impaired by a romanticized adoration of his never-there father as well as a desire to honor the elder Obama’s anti-colonial principles. On that track to expose the President’s ultimate goal of turning America into a flaccid, non-imperialistic country that is run with outdated collectivist policies, D’Souza’s intended ace in the hole is an appearance from Obama’s half-brother George, whose tiny abode in Kenya D’Souza refers to as “something out of Slumdog Millionaire .” The filmmaker fails to get the young man to talk negatively of his powerful brother’s neglect of poor family members abroad, even with literal attempts to “rephrase the question.” Finally, he settles on simply revealing George’s belief that the third world was better off under colonial rule. So what? Other than potentially inspiring an interesting and metaphorical novel about two brothers with divergent relationships to an unknown father in a long-post-colonial world, the disconnect between geographically and temporally distant siblings doesn’t provide much substance for the film’s argument that the President is the worst leader in U.S. history. And really neither does Obama’s presumed paternal problem, which borders on an obsession for D’Souza. Still, it’s a reflection of a certain concern Americans have with the singularity of the executive branch and our compulsion to focus on the individual character of our Presidents over the plans and actions of their overall administrations. Eventually, 2016 does get into real criticisms with Obama’s initial election, which is basically credited to white guilt and the allure for people to be a part of history, and with his first term, which, it’s claimed, shows hints of a larger anti-colonialist agenda. A shot at the relevancy of NASA seems especially misdirected given the excitement of the Curiosity rover landing on Mars earlier this month, however. And further speculation of the President’s full-on dismantling of the U.S. as a superpower once he’s over the hump of re-election is again too hypothetical. Meanwhile, given the concentration of the Romney/Ryan campaign, it’s unfortunate that only a couple minutes near the end of the film are devoted to Obama’s handling of the national deficit. Of course, this isn’t a documentary in support of Mitt Romney or any Republican candidate so much as it’s an extensive attack ad against Barack Obama. It should illuminate just how much of a repeat this election year is of 2004. Then, it wasn’t about voting for Kerry; it was about voting against Bush. Now it’s just politically reversed, not about voting for Romney but against Obama. And if Romney does win, someone, whether Michael Moore or another liberal filmmaker, will give us the next documentary in the cycle of opposition. If there is one major thing I’ll give 2016 credit for, it’s that much of the film plays almost as well to a pro-Obama audience as to those against him. It preaches to both choirs in that a lot of the intentions and policies of the President, which D’Souza sees as negative, are those which the leader’s fans see as positive. Much of the left would surely love it if Obama truly transformed the United States into a nuke-free nation with socialized medicine and education. Some might watch this documentary and think, “well, yes, that’s our Obama.” Of course, there is the occasional blast of clear vitriol, such as when the President is baselessly said to be less concerned with helping the poor than stripping the wealth of the rich. But that’s to be expected with these films, which are less concerned with what kind of President is good for America than what kind of President is not. And I’m sure it’s expected of me to be less focused on what would have made this a good film than what makes it a bad one. I can only say it’s not a very memorable one, and regardless of the outcome this November, after Election Day I guess it doesn’t need to be. Christopher Campbell is an Atlanta-based movie blogger specializing in documentary. Follow him on Twitter @thefilmcynic . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Michael Jackson’s kids Paris, Prince and Blanket threw out the first pitch at a minor league baseball game in Gary, Ind., along with MJ’s sister La Toya. The King of Pop’s three children made the trip to their father’s hometown on Thursday to celebrate what would have been Michael Jackson’s 54th birthday . Prince Michael, 15, Blanket, 10, and Paris Jackson , 14, each took the mound to kick off the Gary Southshore Railcats baseball game. Check it out:
Deneeta Pope, the African-American ex-girlfriend of Republican V.P. nominee Paul Ryan, wants nothing to do with the upcoming Presidential election. She’s also a Barack Obama supporter , though she wishes Ryan well. Ryan mentioned in an interview years ago that he’s experienced racism in part because he has a black sister-in-law as well as a black ex-girlfriend. This came up again recently after some of Ryan’s policies have been criticized – fairly or otherwise – as detrimental to the African-American community. Deneeta Pope has since been ID’d … and wishes she hadn’t been. Pope said yesterday, a day after Paul Ryan’s acceptance speech at the RNC, “I’m not interested in talking. I don’t know why everyone is calling.” “I’m newly married and would just like to be left alone.” Deneeta did speak briefly on the newly-minted V.P. hopeful, though, telling the Daily Mail that while she remains an ardent Barack Obama backer, she can’t help but cheer for the #2 man on the GOP 2012 ticket at the same time. Pope, 40, said, “I am indeed a Democrat. That’s no secret. But although I have a different political association to Paul, I support him and wish him success.” “Paul is a very nice guy, a kind guy and a family guy.” Daneeta says that she remains in touch with the Wisconsin Congressman; Paul and his wife, Janna Ryan , were even invited to Pope’s wedding in May. Wonder if she has a Paul Ryan shirtless pic or two of her own. Election 2012 :
Clint Eastwood made Twitter’s Day — or at least its night. The veteran actor and filmmaker’s bizarre, aimless speech at the Republican National Convention in Tampa on Thursday night — to a chair that purportedly contained an invisible President Obama — brought out plenty of celebrity tweeters on the social media site. As of Friday morning “Eastwood” was still trending intermittently on the Twitter, and a number of actors and filmmakers’ comments were among the reactions to the Unforgiven actor’s speech. Among them was Magic Mike actress Olivia Munn who tweeted: “Clint Eastwood was talking to an empty chair at the RNC…No, that’s not the set-up to a joke. Its not even a joke.” This Is 40 filmmaker Judd Apatow had fun with the subject on a more oblique level. “Clint used to be Every Which ‘But’Loose . Tonight he got loose,” Apatow tweeted. The truncated film title was a reference to Eastwood’s 1978 buddy picture with an orangutan, Every Which Way But Loose, which seemed to mystify Apatow: “How does that title refer to a relationship with orangutans?” He wrote. “Really. How?” Shaun of the Dead filmmaker Simon Pegg weighed in from the UK, tweeting: “Woken up to excited chatter in the US. Apparently Clint Eastwood had an argument with an empty chair regarding its political standpoint.” Star Trek actor George Takei also weighed in tweeting: Clint Eastwood’s RNC speech was to imaginary Obama in an empty chair. I’m drafting a DNC speech to imaginary Romney in an empty factory.” Nice. Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
How These Celebrities Knew Michael Jackson The term “six degrees of separation” in Hollyweird terms often seems almost non-existent at times. Everytime we turn around, a new couple or new pair of BFFs are popping up and revealing to have known each other for ages. Michael Jackson was undoubtly a huge influence across all facets of entertainment and yet somehow in all of his superstar-dom , he seemed to know any and everyone….with a few random close connections that we never would’ve suspected. See if you can correctly guess which celeb is associated with MJ before peeping the pics being the page numbers: #3 Was rumored to have had an affair with an R&B banger who was also on his record label. #4 Is the former best friend of a prominent “socialite” and MJ’s goddaughter #5 Was at the forefront of one of the most memorable scandals in political history #8 Is known for her ratchet behavior If you didn’t get them all correct, don’t worry, youuuu are nooot alone. Check out a few more celebs and their surprising connections to the King of Pop when you hit the flip.
Well Damn. Looks like Juan Williams shocked his news anchors along with the rest of us after Ann Romney gave her speech last night during the RNC. Williams took heat from his Fox co-workers and even more criticism from conservative bloggers for his assessment of the potential first lady’s address Tuesday night. “Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann Romney, on the other hand looked to me like a corporate wife,” Williams said on Fox News. “And you know the stories she told about struggle, eh, it’s hard for me to believe. She’s a very rich woman, and I know that and America knows that.” Williams also said that Ann Romney didn’t convince him she understood the struggles of the average American woman and looked like “a woman whose husband takes care of her and she’s been very lucky and blessed in this life.” Of course Money Mitt’s team swooped in to criticize Williams’ comments: “We respect our colleagues in media and appreciate they too have invested a lot to be here to cover the convention,” a Romney aide said in a statement to POLITICO. “But, Juan’s comments are deeply disappointing: Not only were they unfair and personal, they were wrong.” They didn’t sound wrong to us but you know they had to come to Ann’s defense. Juan in the meantime defended himself this morning saying, “I think my criticism was aimed at the reality of the economics and the blessings that the Romneys have had,” Williams said. “They’re not average Americans, in terms of their wealth, by any stretch of the imagination.” If Mitt wants to try and pull any of us in, having his wifey up on stage looking like a robot isn’t going to sway our opinions at all. Source Images via Youtube/WENN/Twitter
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