Barack Obama calls George Clooney a ‘good friend’ while Michelle Obama says he’s ‘cute’
Actor George Clooney leaves after he spoke to the media March 15, 2012 at the White House in Washington, DC.
George Clooney is a “wonderful guy” and “cute, too,” according to President Barack Obama and his wife, First Lady Michelle.
In an interview with "Entertainment Tonight," the commander-in-chief ha revealed how he became friends with Clooney, while the first lady confesses to finding him attractive.
Obama also praises Clooney for not taking advantage of their friendship, saying he keeps his distance so that Obama won't be criticized for hanging out with Hollywood celebrities.
No mention of the May fundraiser Clooney held for Obama at his Los Angeles home that raised nearly $15 million, the Associated Press points out.
Nor of the one he is scheduled to hold later this month in Geneva. According to the Huffington Post, tickets for the event start at $1,000 a person.
Obama says he got to know Clooney through his work on Sudan when Obama was in the Senate.
"He is a terrific advocate on behalf of the people of Darfur and to the people of Sudan who've been brutalized for a long time," Obama said.
"And so when I was a senator — this was well before I was president — that was an issue that I was working together on a bipartisan basis, and George, who had traveled there, done documentaries there, and was very well-informed, came to testify in Congress. And so we got to know each other."
Obama also called Clooney a "good man and a good friend" in the interview.
He acknowledged his wife’s admiration of the actor, too, saying:
"Michelle is always frustrated because a lot of the events that George has been involved in, for some reason, she has something else going on," the president said, joking that his staff starts "circling around my office" whenever "Gorgeous George" visits the White House.
"They've got memos they need to make sure I see right away," he added.
Michelle Obama had confessed during the interview that she found the actor attractive: "He's cute," she said.
ET's interview with the Obamas is scheduled to air Monday night.
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