Imagine politically involved Hollywood stars, like Matt Damon or Brad Pitt, working as roving domestic and international representatives for the U.S. government. Or just imagine this: Sean Penn on a mission to North Korea. (Everyone says Kim Jong Il loves the movies. And there's nothing Penn, who recently interviewed Raul Castro, likes better than an international pariah).
Obama may keep his hand-held
Even when it comes to Barack Obama, there is such a thing as too much change.
The president-elect, who spends more time on his BlackBerry than a junior agent at Endeavor, told ABC's Barbara Walters this week that he doesn't want to give up his hand-held.
He isn't the only one who has expressed concern about this.
As a candidate, he used his BlackBerry to stay in touch with advisors and key supporters, like celebrities. "One of the things that I'm going to have to work through is how to break through the isolation and the bubble that exists around the president," Obama told Walters. "And I'm in the process of negotiating with the Secret Service, with lawyers, with White House staff."
Walters followed up: "You might have a BlackBerry?"
"Well, I'm negotiating to figure out how can I get information from outside of the 10 or 12 people who surround my office in the White House," Obama said. "Because, one of the worst things I think that could happen to a president is losing touch with what people are going through day to day."
On election night, Oprah Winfrey told a television reporter that she stayed in contact with Obama during the election by e-mail, and she hopes he doesn't change his e-mail address. (Imagine if the Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin cyber-hackers cracked that account.)
During the campaign, a British newspaper claimed that Clooney was giving foreign policy advice and style tips to Obama via BlackBerry. The actor denied it. (And some might argue that Obama should be giving Clooney the style advice.) The actor also denied being in touch with the politician electronically -- and said he would hand over a million dollars to anyone who could prove it.
If Obama's personal assistant, Reggie Love, turns up driving a new Porsche, maybe we'll know someone collected on that bet.
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tina.daunt@latimes.com
