Eastwood: I Love Herman Cain's Story

Clint Eastwood, currently promoting his J. Edgar Hoover biopic J. Edgar, tells the Los Angeles Times that while he's a liberal on many issues, he cast his vote for Eisenhower in 1952 and hasn't picked a Democratic presidential candidate since. "I’ve always been very liberal when it comes to people thinking for themselves,” says the 81-year-old director. “But I’m a big hawk on cutting the deficit. I was against the stimulus thing, too." Out of the current crop of GOP candidates, Eastwood is most enthusiastic about Herman Cain.

"I love Cain’s story,” he says. “He’s a guy who came from nowhere and did well, obviously against heavy odds. He’s a doer and a straight-talker, which I don’t see enough of from either party." Mitt Romney looks like somebody that you'd pick "if you were casting a movie where you needed someone to play president," Eastwood says with a hint of sarcasm, while Rick Perry shouldn't expect any photo-ops. "If he wanted to meet me, he might be a little disappointed," says Eastwood—who was considered a possible VP pick by George HW Bush in 1988. (More Election 2012 stories.)