Picking Teams in Hollywood

After Barack Obama’s Oscar-week fundraising blitz last month, the ’08 race has heated up for Democratic presidential candidates going a-courtin’ in Hollywood. But the backing of celebrities can be a blessing and a curse, as George Clooney notes in Friday’s L.A. Times, hinting that he will help Obama however he can — even if that means “staying completely away from him.” Sounding like one of his own adoring fans, Clooney says, “I’ve never been around anyone who can literally take someone’s breath away.”

L.A. Times:

Although the actor may not be campaigning publicly for Obama at the moment, he is certainly working for him behind the scenes.

“I spend a lot of time talking with other people, and I tell them, ‘You really have to educate yourself on Obama because the guy is real,’ ” he said. “He fascinates me. People say, ‘Oh, he’s too young,’ you know. But you cannot learn or teach leadership. You either have it or you don’t.”

Read more (Registration wall)