De Niro, Damon: Spies, patriotism and politics

QUESTION FROM STUDENT: I was wondering if you ran into any classified barriers when you were developing your character and also working on the film?

DAMON:  What type of barriers?

MATTHEWS:  Top secret stuff you couldn’t use.

DAMON:  Classified—actually, oh, there’s a mountain of research material for this movie because it’s a pretty well-documented time. there are a lot of biographies that have been written about people who were there at the beginning of the CIA, so there’s actually a lot of information.  I’d actually taken a class in college about this, and had read some of these books and so I didn’t—I didn’t brush up against anything that hadn’t been declassified.  I don’t know if you did?

DE NIRO:  Yes.

MATTHEWS:  And we really did overthrow the government in Guatemala, we really did overthrow the government in Iran.  We did all that, right?

DE NIRO:  Yes.

DAMON:  Yes.

MATTHEWS:  Next question, please?

QUESTION FROM STUDENT: My question is for you, Mr. De Niro.  Do you ever plan to do any future work with Al Pacino?

(APPLAUSE)

DE NIRO:  Yeah, if we find something.  Yes, absolutely. Got to find something.

MATTHEWS:  Take that home with you, that answer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP OF "GOOD SHEPHERD")

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  There is no war.

ROBERT DE NIRO:  Of course there’s a war—I’m watching it on television.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  And who might you be, when it’s all said and done.

DE NIRO:  My name is Conrad Reeve.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  Who do you work for?

DE NIRO:  Nobody whose name you want me to say, Mr. Young, I promise you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE:  It’s all well and good, but when the ‘fit hits the shan,’ somebody is going to have to stay after school.  Who do you suppose that might be?

DE NIRO:  I don’t know what you’re talking about?

(END VIDEO CLIP OF "GOOD SHEPHERD")

MATTHEWS:  Well that was Doctor Nix and the Green Machine. 

QUESTION FROM STUDENT: I was just wondering, would either of you go to war right now?  Not right now, I guess, but would you go to war if you were us?

DE NIRO:  Well that’s such a complex question.

(LAUGHTER)

MATTHEWS:  If you were drafted?

DE NIRO:  Well, I don’t know, that’s another thing about the draft and so on, if it ever would come up again.  I mean, I was for going to Iraq originally and then I saw, I realized that when we went in we didn’t know how to deal with it once we were there.  We just thought they’d all cheer us and we’d be out and then they’d want Democracy.  We’re dealing with—we were just talking about before—the thousands of years old cultures that have all their in-fighting, whatever.  I mean, we can’t come in unless we have a real plan or strategy and I never thought that.

DAMON:  There is this great book that just came out about that called “Imperial Life in the Emerald City.”  That’s definitely a book worth reading, just about that.  We kind of blundered in there with the best intentions, but nevertheless without a plan.  So, but in terms of your question, I agree with Bob that it’s a complex question.  It would depend on certain situations.  I don’t think that it’s fair, as I said before that it seems that we have a fighting class in our country that’s comprised of people who have to go for either financial reasons or you know, I don’t think that that is fair.  And if you’re going to send people to war, if we all get together and decide we need to go to war, then that needs to be shared by everybody, you know.  And if the president has daughters who are of age, then maybe they should go to.

(APPLAUSE)

QUESTION FROM STUDENT: My question is for both Mr. De Niro and Mr. Damon—it kind of piggybacks that last question.  I’m speaking for the population of aspiring filmmakers and actors here at the school.  What is your role as prominent celebrities and as artists in being proactive in the issues at stake? What is your role as an actor or a filmmaker?  What can you do right now?  What should you be doing?  What should your fellow actors and filmmakers be doing?

DAMON:  Making movies about issues that are interesting to you.

(APPLAUSE)

DE NIRO:  I agree.  I mean, "The Good Shepherd” is an example of that, and not that you don’t get involved in other issues directly, obviously, and—yes.

MATTHEWS:  Well, let’s break with that tradition right now.  Where do you guys stand on ‘08?  Who should be the next president?

DE NIRO:  (LAUGHS)

MATTHEWS:  Okay.  Give me the one, two, three.  Who would you most like to see as the next president? And number two and number three, something like that.  You don’t have to nail it down, go for win, place, show or something. Who do you want?

DAMON:  Barack Obama.

(APPLAUSE)

DAMON:  But, I would also say that I do some work with a group here in D.C. called Data.  They’re part of the parent organization of the One campaign who prioritize Africa and issues of extreme poverty. 

And whoever’s in there, Republican or Democrat, I hope they take up that issue.  And I will say that I disagree with George Bush about a lot of things, but so far, his emergency plan for AIDS relief, is an outstanding...

MATTHEWS:  In Africa.

DAMON:  In Africa. 

MATTHEWS:  Is the money getting through?

DAMON:  The money—not only is the money getting through, but I’ve been there and I’ve seen—I have met people who are alive because of that money.  It is the only place you can actually look at our tax dollars and equate it with lives saved.  It’s a fantastic program, along with the global fund, and the president should be applauded for it.

(APPLAUSE)

MATTHEWS:  Mr. De Niro, you have one?

DE NIRO:  Well, I think of two people: Hillary Clinton and Obama.

(APPLAUSE)

MATTHEWS:  Well, you’ve read his slogan, haven’t you?

DE NIRO:  No.

MATTHEWS:  Don’t tell mama I’m for Obama.

DE NIRO:  (LAUGHS)  Somewhere in there...

MATTHEWS:  Are you somewhere between them?  Would you like to see that ticket maybe?  Or is that too far out?

DE NIRO:  Possibly.  No, I don’t think it’s far out.

MATTHEWS:  Are we ready for an African-American president?  That’s a fair question.

DE NIRO:  I think we are.

CROWD:  (APPLAUSE)

DE NIRO:  Absolutely.

MATTHEWS:  Would you campaign for Obama?  Would you go out and work for him?

DAMON:  Yes,  I would support him strongly, but, again, I mean, a lot of the work that we’re doing at Data requires a bipartisan...

MATTHEWS:  I love the work you’re doing in Africa.  It’s great.  I think you’re so right.  Thank you.  And you’re really nice to Bush on that.

DAMON:  He deserves it.

MATTHEWS:  Mr. De Niro, it’s an honor.

DE NIRO:  Thank you, Chris.

MATTHEWS:  It’s a great honor to be here.

Thank you very much, Matt.

The movie’s called “The Good Shepherd”.  It’s everything about the CIA, a very personal struggle of a guy who gives his life and really his soul fighting for his country but ends up doing things he never would have done on his own.

And a special thanks to Dr. Alan Merten, president of George Mason University. Good night from HARDBALL and the College Tour.

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