I'm not sure if the transcript does the weirdness justice. Keep in mind that during much of this he was speaking to an empty chair. The NYT has the video. Speaking of the empty chair, there's now a new Internet meme called "Eastwooding." This is a rush transcript:
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Save a little for mt.
[Cheers and applause]
I know what you are thinking.
You are thinking, what is a
movie tradesman doing out here?
You know they are all left
wingers out there.
At least that is what people
think.
That is not really the case.
There are a lot of conservative
people, a lot of moderate
people, republicans, democrats,
in hollywood.
It is just that the conservative
people by the nature of the word
itself play closer to the vest.
They do not go around hot
dogging it.
[Cheers and applause]
but they are there, believe me,
they are there.
I just think, in fact, some of
them around town, I saw john
voigt, a lot of people around.
John is here, an academy award
winner.
A terrific guy.
These people are all like-
minded, like all of us.
So i
somr. obama sitting here.
[00:02:02]
I was going to ask him a couple
of questions.
About -- I remember three and a
obama
won the election.
I was not a big supporter.
I was blessed in that night when
they were talking about hope and
change and talking about, yes we
can, it was dark outdoors,
people were lighting candles.
They were saying, I just
thought, this was great.
Everybody is trying, oprah was
crying.
[Laughter]
I was even trying.
Finally, and I had not cried
that hard since I found out
that there is 23 million
unemployed people in this
country.
[Cheers and applause]
that is something to cry for.
That is a disgrace, a national
disgrace.
We have not done enough,
obviously.
This administration has not done
enough to cure that.
Whenever interest they have is
not strong enough.
I think possibly now it may be
time for somebody else to come
along and solve the problem.
[Cheers and applause]
president, how do you
handle promises that you have
made when you were running for
election, and how do you handle
them?
What do you say to people?
Do you just -- people were
[00:04:00]
wondering.
Even people in your own party
were very disappointed when you
did not close gitmo.
I thought closing that, why
close it, we spend so much money
on it.
I thought maybe as an excuse --
what do you m, shut uo
p?
[Laughter]
I thought maybe it was just
because someone had the stupid
idea of trying terrorists in
downtown new york city.
[Cheers and applause]
I have to hand it to you.
I have to give credit where
credit is due.
You did finally overruled that.
Now we are moving onward.
I know you were against the war
in a iraq.
That is okay.
But the thought the war in
afghanistan was ok.
You thought that was something
worth doing.
We did not check with the
russians to see how did it --
they did there for 10 years.
[Laughter]
[cheers and applause]
but we did it.
It is something to be thought
about.
I think that, when we get to
maybe -- you mentioned something
about having a target date for
bringing everybody home.
You gave that target date, and i
romney asked the only
sensible question, why are you
giving the date out now?
Why do you not just bring them
home tomorrow morning?
[Cheers and applause]
I thought, I am not going to
shut up.
It is my turn.
[Laughter]
[00:06:00]
we will have to have a little
chat about that.
I wondered, all these promises,
I wondered about when the --
what do you want me to tell
romney?
I cannot tell him to do that.
He cannot do that to himself?
[Laughter]
[cheers and applause]
you are getting as bad as biden.
[Cheers and applause]
of course we all now, biden is
the intellect of the democratic
party.
[Laughter]
kind of a grin with a body
behind it.
But I just think that there is
so much to be done.
I think that mr. romney and mr.
Ryan are two guys who can come
along.
I never thought it was a good
idea for attorneys to the
president, anyway.
-- Be president, anyway.
[Cheers and applause]
I think attorneys -- they always
argue
-- weigh both sides.
They are alwayss ad
vocating this and that.
I think it is maybe time for a
businessman.
How about that?
[Cheers and applause]
[00:08:01]
a stellar businessman.
I think it is that time.
I think if you just step aside
and mr. romney can take over.
You can maybe still have the
plane.
Maybe not -- may be a smaller
one.
Not the gas guzzler you take to
colleges to talk about student
loans and stuff like that.
You are an ecological man.
Why would you want to drive that
around?
Anyway.
I am sorry.
I cannot do that to myself
either.
[Laughter]
[cheers and applause]
I would like to say something,
ladies and gentlemen.
Something that I think is very
important.
You, we, we own this country.
[Cheers and applause]
we own it.
It is not you owning it, not
politicians owning it.
Politicians are employees of
hours.
-- Ours.
[Cheers and applause]
they are just going to come
around and beg for votes every
few years.
It is the same old deal.
But I think it is important that
you realize, you are the best in
the world.
Whether you are a democrat or
republican orrin libertarian or
whatever, you are the best.
We should not ever forget that.
When somebody does not do the
job, we have to let them go.
[Cheers and applause]
[00:10:29]
okay, just remember that.
I am speaking out for everybody
out there.
If it does not work --
[shouting]
I do not say that word anymore.
Maybe one last time.
I am saying, we do not have to
be masochists and vote for
somebody we do not really even
want in office just because they
seem to be nice or maybe not so
nice, if you look at some of the
recent ads.
[Cheers and applause]
but ok.
You want to make my day?
[Cheers and applause]
are right.
I started, you finish it.
Go ahead --
>> make my day!
>> Thank you very much.
