George Clooney expected in Washington, DC on Wednesday

Joanna wrote:Thanks EEOsandy for posting the valuable video of George in Sudan, much appreciated.

Thanks goes to Macs - I just commented on it, Joanna. Again, great video though.

Ah just checked...my apologies...it originated from Henway.
Thanks to everyone from across the pond

Thanks again macs for the live stream. Just finished watching it - it adjourned at 12:16 p.m. eastern time. Senator Kerry stated they will stay engaged and will offer opportunities for this movement. However, he also stated we need increased leverage from China. It's obvious this problem won't be resolved any time soon but thanked John and George for their involvement.

I tried to watch at work but again no sound....what did they all laugh at? wonder why he didn't shave...unless he thinks it makes him look more serious....hopefully something good will come of this. Here's hoping his video will go viral too....

cindigirl wrote:Thanks again macs for the live stream. Just finished watching it - it adjourned at 12:16 p.m. eastern time. Senator Kerry stated they will stay engaged and will offer opportunities for this movement. However, he also stated we need increased leverage from China. It's obvious this problem won't be resolved any time soon but thanked John and George for their involvement.

I watched it too cindi....sitting here in sunshine in UK at around 3 to 4pm.
It's amazing the links I have on my little Mac.

I found it very interesting and obviously the film George made had a great impact, and will continue to do so.
He said he was astounded when he came back, after 8 days in Sudan, to discover the Kony 12 campaign had grown so much.
So hopefully the Sudan campaign will achieve the same notoriety over the youtube network.
It concerns me about his High Profile persona uncovering the war crimes in Sudan and he's really sticking his neck out now.
Hope he is safe ALL the time, not just when he's in Sudan.

Thanks for the pictures and videos.

Great job and God bless all the humanitarians that risked their life to bring these crimes to our attention.

George looks so good in the pictures and loved the interview with Ann.

Jojo! Language please! I didn't write in full unlike you so descriptive a term! Everyone is entitled to their opinion and we don't know unless you have insider info how "close" George is to Stan hmmmm? You sound like a mothern hen! I stand by what I said, and that George looks Dammmmm fine for having come through bomb dropping, barren, worntorn Sudan!

Joanna, it's true, the Kony 12 campaign has generated millions and millions of internet hits in such a short time. And the circumstances are so similar to Sudan. George has been working so hard on his Sudan concerns and I hope interest doesn't die down like it did when he was there last year. He did achieve statehood for Darfur but basically the massacre persists now in Sudan. He's so committed to this project I hope and pray he can accomplish at least one half of what he wants and needs. And I too hope for his continued safety.

fluffy... I've PM'd you....OK ?

Originally posted by lelacorb on "Where is George thread"
Thanks lelacorb for finding it so soon


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THANKS EVERYONE FOR DOING AN EXCEPTIONAL JOB
AT KEEPING ALL OF US WELL INFORMED!!

Got his message on my email today if anyone is interested in contacting their congressman to help:

The lives of half a million people in Sudan are now at risk.

Many could starve to death from Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's blockade of food and humanitarian aid or die from his relentless bombing of villages and refugee camps. These are tactics are similar to the ones he used in Darfur to terrorize and murder innocent civilians.

But there is hope. Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA) and other Members of Congress have just introduced bi-partisan legislation that demands strong U.S. action to address the urgent and growing humanitarian needs of the Sudanese people.

Can you take just a few moments to urge your congressperson to co-sponsor the Sudan Peace, Security and Accountability Act of 2012?

Failure to act in Darfur resulted in the deaths of 300,000 people. And now Bashir is systematically starving men, women and children in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states. Violence against civilians during the planting season resulted in meager yields at harvest time. Compounding the crisis, Bashir is blockading food and humanitarian aid for these desperate people. We can't let him get away with this again — we must act now.

Here's what the Sudan Peace, Security and Accountability Act will do:
•Establish tough new sanctions on Bashir, his cronies and anyone who supports them or their blockade of food and humanitarian aid;
•Address the current humanitarian crisis in South Kordofan, Blue Nile and Abyei, while continuing to assist in Darfur and other parts of Sudan;
•Increase U.S. engagement with other stakeholders with influence in Sudan;
•Enforce sanctions against any government or person who supports or assists in acts of serious human rights violations; and
•Create benchmarks for ending sanctions if the government of Sudan halts the violence against its own people and works for genuine peace and democracy.

If you have 5 minutes — you can call 1-800-GENOCIDE to be connected to your Representative to deliver your message directly via phone.

Thank you for continuing to stand up for the people of Sudan. Together we will make a difference.

Sincerely,

Tom Andrews
President
United to End Genocide

P.S. In just two days, I’ll be joined by hundreds of activists in DC including Representative Jim McGovern, actor and activist George Clooney, NAACP President and CEO Ben Jealous, and Martin Luther King III, as we speak out for the people of Sudan at our Day of Action. But our actions will mean even more if your congressperson hears from you TODAY.

cindigirl wrote:Thanks again macs for the live stream. Just finished watching it - it adjourned at 12:16 p.m. eastern time. Senator Kerry stated they will stay engaged and will offer opportunities for this movement. However, he also stated we need increased leverage from China. It's obvious this problem won't be resolved any time soon but thanked John and George for their involvement.

you're welcome
I couldn't watch it myself (being at work, plus had a fight with my boss...} so I posted a quick link and was hoping on some people here to comment !
I think it's great in itself that it was streamed _ at least everyone who's interested can know better
I mean gossip is fine, but this issue calls for more

George Clooney leaves Capitol Hill in Washington (March 14)


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mhmm

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Mr Clooney goes to Washington
AP March 15, 2012 4:15AM



Star power: Actor George Clooney has gone to Washington in an attempt to focus attention on the plight of civilians in South Sudan. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

ACTOR George Clooney has warned of a humanitarian crisis in the volatile border area between Sudan and South Sudan.

Clooney is just back from a visit to the region where residents are taking refuge in the Nuba Mountains because of aerial bombardments.

He described how he secretly travelled across the border, came under rocket attack and witnessed death and destruction in the African countries. He recalled how a nine-year-old boy had his hand blown off.

"What we're looking at is a real disaster," Clooney told a small group of reporters before testifying at a US Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing in Washington.

Travelling with John Prendergast, the co-founder of the advocacy group the Enough Project, Clooney filmed the hardship for a video that was posted online shortly before his testimony.

The Academy Award-winning actor brought his star power to an issue that the committee chairman, Senator John Kerry, a Democrat, acknowledged captures the public's attention only intermittently.

After more than two decades of fighting, South Sudan seceded last July and became the world's newest country.

But violence has raged along the border since then, and the two countries have been at odds over oil located in South Sudan but shipped through pipelines in Sudan.

Disputes have halted oil shipments, a blow to China, which receives 6 per cent of its oil from Sudan and now must find other sources.

Clooney acknowledged a "misery fatigue" for Americans amid the war in Afghanistan and crises in Syria, Somalia and elsewhere as he tries to raise awareness about the suffering in South Sudan.

But he pointed out that US President Barack Obama cited the shutdown of oil in the Sudan region as contributing to the rise in gas prices, and a resolution of the conflict could affect Americans at the pump.

At the hearing, Princeton Lyman, the US special envoy on Sudan, described a deteriorating situation.

Clooney also planned to meet with Mr Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Clooney uses star power to spotlight Sudan crisis
By DONNA CASSATA, Associated Press – 8 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — George Clooney used his Hollywood celebrity Wednesday to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis in the volatile border area between Sudan and South Sudan, offering a firsthand account of the suffering as thousands are forced to take refuge in caves because of daily aerial bombardments.

"What you see is a constant drip of fear," the actor and human rights activist told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Just back from an eight-day trip to the region, Clooney described a secret, six-hour trip across the border to the Nuba Mountains, with rocket attacks, death and destruction.

He recalled how a 9-year-old boy had his hands blown off.

Teamed with John Prendergast, co-founder of the advocacy group the Enough Project, Clooney made a film that captured the images of crimes against humanity.
The four-minute video showed refugees in caves, the boy with bloody arms and a woman marked by her wounds. In the final image, Clooney stood above what appeared to be a dead man splayed on the ground.
"How many more bodies until the Nuba Mountains become the next Darfur?" asked the video, which was released online.

More than two decades of fighting in the region gave way last year to an agreement to create the world's newest country, South Sudan. It seceded from Sudan last July amid hopes that have deteriorated into border clashes, deadly fighting and a standoff on oil.

Clooney said civilians who have farmed the fields are unable to work for fear of bombs dropping from military planes. Sudan has refused to allow aid agencies into the region.
Nancy Lindborg, an official with the U.S. Agency for International Development, told the committee that 250,000 people are on the brink of a famine with the upcoming rainy season.

"These are not the cave people of the Nuba Mountains," Clooney said in an interview with reporters before his testimony.
"They're hiding in these caves because they're attacked on a daily basis. The Geneva Convention calls that war crimes."

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir is wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court for killings and rapes committed in Darfur. Clooney referred to Bashir and others as war criminals.

Darfur has been in turmoil since 2003, when ethnic African rebels accusing the Arab-dominated Sudanese government of discrimination took up arms. The Khartoum government is accused of retaliating by unleashing Arab militias on civilians — a charge the government denies. The U.N. estimates 300,000 people have died and 2.7 million have been displaced.

The committee chairman, Sen. John Kerry, acknowledged that Americans' attention is often diverted by other crises around the world, but resolving the issues in the Sudan region is critical.

"Make no mistake: It is the leaders in Khartoum and Juba (South Sudan's capital) who must choose between a future of conflict and poverty or a future of security and prosperity. But we must not abdicate the important role the United States can play in helping to nurture that process, just as we helped midwife the birth of this new nation," Kerry said.

Clooney said he understood the competition from other major stories such as the Arab Spring and jobs, but he argued that the Sudan conflict should matter to Americans because of its affect on the price of gas.
Oil-rich South Sudan and Sudan, the keeper of the pipelines, have been at odds over oil and profits. Exports have stopped, putting pressure on oil prices worldwide. China receives about 6 percent of its oil from Sudan, and with that source shut off, it must go elsewhere to buy.

"So we actually have a financial interest in this working out," Clooney told reporters.
Clooney suggested that the Senate send a special envoy to China to seek their help with the Sudan dispute and freeze the financial assets of the Sudanese leaders to prevent them from buying weapons.

Clooney also met with Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, on Tuesday and planned to meet with President Barack Obama at the White House and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday.

"I'm not a policymaker," he told reporters. "My job is to just raise the volume."

Copyright © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

lelacorb wrote:George Clooney’s Crusade for Diplomatic Intervention in Sudan
Mar 14, 2012 8:33 AM EDT
The movie star is using his fame—and an audience with Obama and Hillary—to press for diplomatic intervention in the war-torn African nation. Lloyd Grove on the Hollywood statesman’s impassioned plea.
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Comments (1)

Yet President al-Bashir and his cronies have managed to escape arrest by the International Criminal Court, and while such countries as South Africa have banned them from visiting, they are still welcome in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Saudi Arabia and it seems also Qatar will never reject a muslim brother even if this "brother" is the scum of the earth, it is against their religion beliefs and possibly the sharia law (not sure about that). If you remember the atrocities of Idi Amin, when he was finally ousted and he had to flee Uganda, all nations rejected him, except Saudi Arabia, again, I don't think he was welcomed there but they could not refuse him. Idi Amin and his family lived in Jeddah and he was given a house, help and a presumably a salary; however, he was restrained from getting involved in politics. If Al-Bashir flees to Saudi Arabia and stays out of trouble and leaves Sudan alone, is the best we can expect now.

There are so many war lords now, in various parts of Africa, carrying out the most atrocious acts on their fellow men, women & children.
It makes me wonder if they have all have become insane
through STD's damaging their brains and their souls.
Even so, that doesn't help the victims living in fear and torment
day by day.
We have nothing to complain about do we, compared to that ?

I do admire GTC & JP and all the others trying their damnedest
to do something for them and hope they're not now on some mad man's hit list.

According to this, he'll be at the State Dinner tonight.

Capitol Hill, West Wing Reportage

George Clooney Comes to Dinner

By Betsy Rothstein on March 14, 2012 3:50 PM


After snagging George Clooney at Union Station last night, Colin Drummond (who’s now setting up shop at ColinDaily.com) caught up with him today and found out from George himself that he’ll be attending the State Dinner tonight at the White House.

No word on whether he’s bringing his girlfriend Stacy Kiebler. All bets are on his father, Nick Clooney. Colin shot this picture of George outside the Senate Dirksen building today.

By the way, we hear that this dinner is expected to be loaded with big names. Word has it John Legend and his Sports Illustrated model fiance Christine Teigen will be at dinner tonight as well.

I hope that will surely bring his father good topics of conversation if Stacy could bring in a second slag her noble action!Stacy could talk about diet, clothing, and then nothing! I do not think there is room for her!

EEOsandy wrote:According to this, he'll be at the State Dinner tonight.

Capitol Hill, West Wing Reportage

George Clooney Comes to Dinner

By Betsy Rothstein on March 14, 2012 3:50 PM


After snagging George Clooney at Union Station last night, Colin Drummond (who’s now setting up shop at ColinDaily.com) caught up with him today and found out from George himself that he’ll be attending the State Dinner tonight at the White House.

No word on whether he’s bringing his girlfriend Stacy Kiebler. All bets are on his father, Nick Clooney. Colin shot this picture of George outside the Senate Dirksen building today.

By the way, we hear that this dinner is expected to be loaded with big names. Word has it John Legend and his Sports Illustrated model fiance Christine Teigen will be at dinner tonight as well.

They are expecting hundreds of people so the dinner has been moved from the official dining room to a tent in the South Lawn. Luckily we are having a very warm day in Washington today (almost 80 degrees), so it will be great sitting outside. The complete guest list is still under wrap but so far we know that:

Mumford and Sons — the British folk-rock combo that’s said to be a favorite of David and Samantha Cameron — will entertain at tonight’s White House state dinner. So will John Legend, the all-American R&B crooner who is a perennial favorite for Democratic high-end event planners.

And some of the celebrity guest names are slipping out, thanks to Twitter: Golf superstar Rory McIlroy, “Downton Abbey” star Hugh Bonneville, and Wendell Pierce of “The Wire” and “Treme,” in addition to Damian Lewis of “Homeland.”

The decor, we’re told, follows an “America’s backyard” theme. (“Planters and centerpieces used at the dinner are intended to emulate nature and the flowing ‘landscape gardens’ that are common in England.”). And the menu “takes its inspiration” from the White House garden’s late winter harvest and early spring greens plucked just yesterday. (The garden uses plastic-shrouded “hoop houses” to grow greens through the winter.)

First course: Crisped halibut with potato crust, shaved brussel sprouts, applewood smoked bacon.

Second course: Spring garden lettuces, shallot dressing, shaved breakfast radish, cucumbers and avocados.

Main course: Bison Wellington, red wine reduction, French beans, cipollini onion.

Dessert: Warm Meyer lemon steamed pudding with Idaho huckleberry sauce and Newtown Pippin apples.

Hungry George????

hope they're not now on some mad man's hit list


it was my best fear
from the beginning

Wow, thanks socimar, for the State Dinner details. I was fantasizing about what it would be like and what the menu would be. Thanks!

Just watched the video of the Sudan....so sad...the babies made me cry...wish this could go as viral as the Kony video....

poor boy...


hope he has a big family
to help him
in his future life

would like to be near him



and near George too
who is surely now safe
but
who also
can still be in danger


he is offering
somehow
his own life

this is the best
he can offer

and

the worst
at the same time


we all need you alive

I'm with you silly girl this issue needs to get as much attention as it did.

Morning Dexter....I'm off to bed now

Pass the video round to as many as we can ? It's on youtube....

Looks like George will be attending the dinner stag....

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Here are getty photos of arrival....with JP and I guess his wife....how weird they must feel going from the Sudan to the White House in Tux's

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Here's the guest list. Michelle Obama is wearing Marchesa. Coincidentally, Harvey Weinstein and Georgina Chapman are guests.

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I'd love to be sat at a table with George and Sir Richard Branson, what an amazing and intellectually stimulating dinner that would be. George's work in Darfur and the Sudan is amazing, the fact that he is willing to put his life in danger to draw attention to the plight of others makes him a truly remarkable human being. There are so many celebrities that could learn so much from him and actually use the platform they have been given to make change.
On a completely different note, boy is he lucky Yummy. Love the scruff, wonder if he's growing a beard for his next role?

Question fellow Clooneyphiles.......is this his first state dinner?

I think the woman might be the one who also testified today

According to James Chapman from the Daily Mail, Clooney is seated with the British Prime Minister's wife for the state dinner.

James Chapman (Mail)
SamCam seated with George Clooney at White House dinner. Watch out Dave! Or maybe not #dcindc

Who’s at the head table for the White House state dinner for Britain?
By The Reliable Source
We’ve obtained a seating chart for the head table at tonight’s state dinner — and yes, George Clooney got a seat at it.At some previous dinners, the Obamas sat at separate tables; here, they’reback at the same head table, with both guests of honor, David and Samantha Cameron. And they have continued what seems to have been an unspoken tradition of this administration, seating a same-sex couple at the table: Chad Griffin, the new president of the Human Rights Campaign, with his plus-one, Jerome Fallon.

Who are the others? David Adjaye is the British architect selected to design the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, and model Ashley Shaw-Scott is his date. Damian Lewis is the British star of “Homeland”; his wife, actress Helen McCrory is also at the table. Elaine Brye, accompanied by Courtney William Brye, is an Ohio woman whose letter about her four children in the military caught the first lady’s attention. Army Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry, accompanied by his wife Ashley, was awarded the Medal of Honor last year for bravery in Afghanistan. Marva Smalls, accompanied by Francisco Lopes Borges, is an executive at Nickelodeon. Adm. James A. Winnefeld Jr., here with his wife Mary, is vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. And of course, you know billionaire investor Warren Buffett. In a slight twist, his wife Astrid is seated elsewhere, while his daughter Susie joins him at the head table.

Below is a rough schematic of how the guests are seated around a long table. It’s a slightly uneven arrangement — eight on one side, nine on the other — so Clooney, there was totally enough room for you to bring your girlfriend if you had wanted to!

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fluffy wrote:Joanna, I'm drawing a point of reference in that Stan presumably in the US nice n cosy, to George being in Sudan dodging bombs, probably not much food and no sleep! That's why Stan has no reason to look so dishevelled!! No disrespect intended but point made!

Must be new rules now and a new Mod, fluffy. Can only post nice things otherwise your opinions don't count. Even though you were talking about a photo in this thread. I posted once that someone looked like crap in the Lisa thread and was told off, too.

Joanna wrote:Ah just checked...my apologies...it originated from Henway.
Thanks to everyone from across the pond

We are ALL thankful to EVERYONE who posts links, videos, photos. Why do we have to have constant posts about it. Alot of people come here to get a quick update and then have to spend time sorting out the news and comments from all the thank yous.

Can we all say that its a given that ALL OF US are thankful and leave it at thatQQ

with the First Lady....

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beautiful photo of Michelle Obama. I love the necklace

i think we shouldn't stop posting about IT the whole point from this website is to be up to date with every info or thing George 's doing
he did wear a tux

here too

that's so nice
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Thanks to all, what a beautiful photo he looks like not only is he there and present, but as if the lady is important.

George looks very good and he got to sit next to Mrs Obama. She does look good. Is that Johns wife with them?

Wonder if there were any party crashers this time?

Are those lilacs? Nice.

thanks

lilacs are wonderful !

it's a great pic of him and Michelle Obama !

work is waiting !

ciao

George, if someone introduces themselves as a White House intern - for the love of your career, run.

Dexterdidit wrote:George looks very good and he got to sit next to Mrs Obama. She does look good. Is that Johns wife with them?

Prendergast's wife is not on the guest list that appears in the Washington post . Neither does the name of the USAID woman who testified yesterday.

Thanks for the dinner links and pictures !