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In an interview with Mark Hamill at his Malibou, California home, Jonathan Capehart for The Washington Post spoke to the iconic actor about Star Wars, as expected, and politics which might be unexpected.
However, if you follow Hamill's Twitter account @HamillHimself, you'll see the sci-fi star doesn't shy away from the issues facing the United States and the world.
Hamill pointed out how social media changed everything when it comes to interaction between fans and the objects of their admiration. As opposed to a letter that may or may not get answered weeks or months later, celebrities can instantly garner reactions from their fans and vice versa.
The man who made Luke Skywalker a household name joins a long list of celebrities using their social media platforms to speak out about the issues that concern them, such as George Takei, Alyssa Milano and Ron Perlman.
Some pundits criticize celebrities, be they actors or athletes, for engaging in political discourse. Laura Ingraham famously told LeBron James to "shut up and dribble."
But Hamill defended the practice.
Everybody who votes I think is entitled to an opinion. If you don't vote, I don't think you're entitled to an opinion. But I've always voted, all my life. I've never missed an election and when people say, 'Hey, Hamill, shut up. Stick to acting,' I said, 'Really? I mean would you say that to a truck driver? Hey, shut up. Stick to truck driving.' No. His vote is as important as mine and I think that's the great equalizer. That's what's so great about democracy.
During the interview, Hamill revealed his daughter advised him to be less vocal in his views on Twitter because he would "offend half the country" to which Hamill remarked,
"I said 'no, 32 percent of the country'," in a clear reference to the margin of support for President Donald Trump. Hamill also joins a long list of media personalities that are less than favorable in their view of the 45th president.
On the subject of Trump, and former Defense Secretary and Vice President Dick Cheney, Hamill remarked that comparisons to Darth Vader are completely unfair.
To Darth Vader.
Listen, I really get upset then when people compare [Trump] or even Dick Cheney to Darth Vader….'Cause Darth Vader repented. He saw the error of his ways. I don't see either one of them doing that."
Capehart asked Hamill where he would place Donald Trump on the Jedi spectrum of morality, to which the actor chuckled before replying.
Listen... I was in New York in the 80's doing theater. And I found him highly amusing. You know, this big loudmouth, grandiose, gaudy egomaniac with zero sense of self-awareness. That's just inherently funny."
"I didn't really start disliking him intensely until he got on the whole birther bandwagon," Hamill continued. "That just really deeply offended me."
I can't say anything about him that hasn't been said, but it's just preposterous. He's a preposterous person and it's a preposterous presidency.
The actor also made a prediction for the future of the Trump administration.
"Look, I don't expect him to make it the full four years."
When asked to clarify, he added, "Because of scandal." The actor stated living in today's United States was akin to waking up every morning in a sprawling Tom Clancy novel.
Dare you go to a website, 'OK, what did he do today? What did he say today...'. It's scary... It would be funny if the stakes weren't so high."
"I mean, it's just scary," Hamill reiterated, "because he's an incredible conman... I sympathize with the people who voted for him because hey, politics as usual, it makes me sick too. Ya know, they were so wanting to just blow up the system. I get that."
Reaction to the scathing review of the president has largely flown under the radar, but the interviewer shared the interview today on Twitter. Reactions began pouring in.
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