Brad Pitt for Mayor? 'I Don't Have a Chance'

But no, he's not running for mayor

By Evann Gastaldo, Newser Staff

Posted Aug 13, 2009 11:34 AM CDT

(Newser) – To mark the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Brad Pitt spoke to MSNBC about his effort to rebuild the Lower 9th Ward with his Make It Right foundation—and the grassroots campaign to push him to run for mayor of New Orleans. He says he'd run if chosen, but “on the gay marriage, no religion, legalization and taxation on marijuana platform. I don’t have a chance,” he tells Ann Curry. “That’s not what I do best.”

He circles back to the city itself: “We are the greenest neighborhood in the United States already, and that’s only with 15 houses,” he says of his rebuilding project. “We will be 150 houses next year. It’s an extraordinary success; at the same time I’m irritated because there were 4,000 homes that were lost in this neighborhood. We’re just scratching the surface.”

[Images (5)]

[Videos (1)]

Brad Pitt poses for a photograph in Kellogg Park, a technologically advanced playground in the Lower 9th Ward that uses solar energy to run its electronic wireless game system in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)

Brad Pitt talks about his plan to build homes in the Lower 9th Ward in New Orleans, Monday, Dec. 3, 2007. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

Lower Ninth Ward resident Pam Dashiell talks with Brad Pitt at a environmentally friendly house under construction in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2007. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Brad Pitt walks to a news conference with Global Green USA in front of an environmentally friendly house under construction in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans in this Aug. 21, 2007 file photo. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)

Brad Pitt leans out of the door of an environmentally friendly house under construction in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2007. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Ann Curry interviews Brad Pitt in New Orleans. (msnbc)

View larger videos >>

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Houston Seemed to Predict Own Death

Plus: Whitney's funeral will be live-streamed

(NEWSER) - Whitney Houston may have had a premonition of her own death, telling friends she "really wanted to see Jesus" in the days before she died. Friends tell TMZ Houston quoted the Bible, sang hymns, and talked a lot about the afterlife in recent days, and said she "felt like her time was coming." After singing "Yes, Jesus Loves Me" in her final public appearance , Houston told a friend the next morning, "I'm gonna go see Jesus ... I want to see Jesus. You know, he's so cool ... I really want to see that Jesus." More»

Chris Brown: Suck it, Haters, I Got a Grammy

Singer tweets, then deletes, response to controversy

(NEWSER) - Chris Brown—who really needs to learn to step away from the Twitter—lashed out at his critics in a rant on the social networking site that was predictably and quickly deleted. Brown, apparently upset with all the controversy over his Grammys appearance , tweeted a series of messages yesterday that culminated in this classiness: "HATE ALL U WANT BECUZ I GOT A GRAMMY Now! That's the ultimate FUCK OFF!" More»

Cindy Crawford: Don't Photoshop My Mole

Plus, daughter Kaia wants to be a model because...

(NEWSER) - Cindy Crawford is known for her mole, and she doesn't want it erased. In an interview with the Fashion Week magazine The Daily picked up by the Telegraph , Crawford recalls one of the worst cover campaigns in her past. "The one that makes me cringe the most is British Vogue. The first time they put me on the cover, they airbrushed off my mole," says the supermodel. "Whenever they mess with the mole, I cringe!" More»

Probe Launched Into Whitney's Prescriptions, Doctors

Medical records will be subpoenaed

(NEWSER) - The investigation into Whitney Houston's death is now turning to her doctors and pharmacies. Investigators are expected in the next few days to serve subpoenas on the singer's physicians and the pharmacies where Houston obtained multiple prescription drugs, reports the Los Angeles Times . Officials aim to determine whether the drugs were dispensed properly, and if the singer was receiving too many prescriptions, a source tells the newspaper. Investigators will likely pore over a state-created database of controlled substances prescribed in California. Tracking celebrity prescription drug use can be complicated because they may regularly use drugs prescribed to aides, according to law enforcement authorities. More»

Oprah Winfrey: Sorry for Begging for OWN Viewers

Tweet got talk show queen in trouble with Nielsen

(NEWSER) - We all know the Oprah Winfrey Network is struggling with ratings —but apparently the situation is so bad that Winfrey herself felt the need to tweet a request for viewers on Sunday night, as the Grammys were airing. "Every 1 who can please turn to OWN especially if u have a Nielsen box," she tweeted just before Oprah's Next Chapter aired. An uproar quickly ensued, with some slamming Oprah for "begging for viewers," Fox News reports. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Brad Pitt for Mayor? 'I Don't Have a Chance'