Periscope 2020 ELECTION
Hollywood Democrats worry that
disunity on their side only helps
Trump. “Sometimes activism can be
counterproductive,” says Eric Braeden,
the politically active star of TV soap
The Young and the Restless, who is sup-
porting Biden. “Do we need someone
who can beat this clown, Trump?
Of course. All of Hollywood should
pledge to back Bernie, or Joe, or who-
ever the leading candidate is. We can-
not afford this division.”
Former MAS*H star Mike Far-
rell, who, along with Martin Sheen,
was one of the faces of Hollywood’s
anti-Iraq War movement during the
George W. Bush administration, says
he’s hearing whispers among celebri-
ties who worry that Sanders not only
won’t beat Trump but that he could
also cost the Democrats House and
Senate seats. Farrell says he does
not subscribe to that theory. He and
Sheen had supported Warren.
“Politics is part of the conversation
most of the time in Hollywood,” says
Farrell. “More than anything, we’re
concerned about finding someone
who can beat Trump. Our concern
over the horror of this man’s leader-
ship grows everyday. It’s been an issue
for some time. You see these Trump
supporters who are so passionate
and so angry that I’ve heard stories
of people losing friendships and even
family relationships.”
One celebrity tells Newsweek he
lost a longtime friend who berated
him for hours over his refusal to back
Sanders. “Don’t use my name in your
story,” he says.
The atmosphere is so heated, Asner
says, that he avoids political discus-
sions on studio sets.“Of course there
celebrity supporter and has tweeted
multiple videos backing him, one
of them calling Trump “the greatest
president since Abraham Lincoln.”
Most of Trump’s other admirers
in show business prefer to keep quiet
about it. Eric Matthews, a celebrity
money manager who for six years
ran Friends of Abe, an organization of
conservative stars like Kelsey Gram-
mer, Patricia Heaton , Robert Duvall
and Gary Sinise, says, “Hollywood
has created an environment where
dissent isn’t allowed, so there is grow-
ing secret support of Trump.” Actor
Antonio Sabato Jr. recently told Vari-
ety that his support for Trump made
him unemployable in Hollywood.
In addition to donations, liberal
stars are also promoting candidates
with appearances—Van Dyke, Silver-
man and Public Enemy Radio at a
Bernie Sanders rally on March 1, for
example. Before his campaign ended,
Kevin Costner narrated an online
video for Buttigieg, who had been run-
ning a contest in which the prize was
a meet-and-greet with himself and
Back to the Future star Michael J. Fox.
But while candidates jockey for
celebrity endorsements, the jury is
out as to their effectiveness. “Nobody
is going to switch parties because a
star said nasty things about Trump,”
says John Pitney, professor of Amer-
ican politics at Claremont McKenna
College. “Celebrities can endow can-
didates with two important things:
attention and money.”
In the end most stars willing to
state their politics publicly will prob-
ably rally around whoever Democrats
nominate, notwithstanding any pos-
sible fallout at the box office. A 2012
Penn Schoen Berland poll indicated
that 52 percent of Republicans and
36 percent of Democrats would avoid
paying for a movie starring an actor
whose political views offend them.are fights in Hollywood over who to
support, he says. “Everybody knows
that. The only way we’ll defeat Trump
is uniting around a candidate.”
Asner adds that he can tolerate
arguments with fellow Democrats
but can’t stomach Trump support-
ers.“There are some sick people that
I know not to press because I suspect
they back Trump. I can deal with
them on every level except the presi-
dency, and, if I find out they support
Trump, I’d have trouble seeing them
again,” he says.
“I’m talking about actors,” Asner-
says. “But they won’t admit to sup-
porting Trump They feel like Jews
running from the Nazis. Hollywood
is a progressive community and
has no regard for them. There’s no
blacklist, though. Look at Jon Voight.
He’s right wing. I wouldn’t say ‘no’ to
working with him, but it would pain
me to further his career.”
Voight, who didn’t respond to
Newsweek’s request for comment,
is by far the president’s most vocal“The only way we’ll
defeat Trumpis uniting around
a candidate”12 NEWSWEEK.COM
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BA5 C5 OFT0EDIAʔ*ETT<MARCH 27, 2020SELECTIVE APPEAL: President
Trump, at a campaign rally on January
28 in New Jersey, has few public fans
among big names in Hollywood.