Clint Eastwood (Sans Chair) Talks Politics, Bemoans Lack Of Bipartisanship

Clint Eastwood is sounding off on politics once again, only this time, he sounds a lot less confused than he did at the Republican National Convention when he gave his now-infamous “empty chair” speech.

On CNBC Friday, Eastwood talked about the political climate in this country, bemoaning the lack of bipartisan cooperation in Congress. In his opinion, the disputes between the two major political parties will only leave the people complacent and complicate national politics all the more.

“It’s almost like they don’t give a damn,” Eastwood said. “If they don’t give a damn, why do they expect anybody else to?”

The actor and director gave credit to Republican Sen. Alan Simpson and former White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles for at least trying to work together in 2010. As our nation’s financial woes continue to build up, Eastwood would like to see the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (best known as Simpson-Bowles) make a comeback.

“They were just dismissed, and that was the end of it,” Eastwood said. “They’re probably smarter than most.”

The Simpson-Bowles plan would have cut the federal deficit by $4 trillion, reduced debt by 60 percent by 2023, and eliminated the deficit completely by 2035. Despite some support from characters on both sides of the aisle, NY Times economist Paul Krugman denounced the plan as “unserious,” and the plan’s deep spending cuts to Social Security were criticized by opponents.

What do you think? Do you agree with Clint Eastwood? Should there be more bipartisan cooperation like Simpson-Bowles?