Did Brad Pitt convince his Republican brother not to run for Congress?

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Brad Pitt’s younger brother Doug is often the spokesperson for the Pitt family, so it’s a given that Doug knows a lot about being diplomatic, dealing with the press, and knowing when to keep his mouth shut. Coincidentally, those are great qualities for a politician. When the Missouri state Republican Party was thinking and talking about who should run in Missouri’s seventh congressional district. That seat is currently being held by Rep. Roy Blunt, who is the front-runner for the Republican nomination for the 2010 Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Kit Bond. So the state party is looking for someone young, good-looking, family-oriented, with great name-recognition for the congressional seat. Guess who they wanted? None other than Doug Pitt! Doug is a successful local Springfield businessman and philanthropist, and he apparently is quite the local Republican, unlike his brother Brad, who is quite the liberal Democrat. It’s sort of like a John Steinbeck novel.

Anyway, when Doug’s name came up, Brad apparently convinced his little brother not to run. This is according to the National Enquirer – they claim Brad has “big plans” for the work he and Doug will be doing together, and they wouldn‘t be able to do their work if Doug ran for Congress. Just in the last six months, Doug and Brad (and Angelina Jolie, through the Jolie-Pitt Foundation) have given away more than $2.5 million to Missouri-based charities and causes. There was the $1 million donation to a children’s charity just before Christmas last year; then the $600,000 to Drury University for environmental technology (in the name of their father); and just a couple of weeks ago there was the $1 million donation to a pediatric cancer ward in honor of Jane Pitt. It seems Brad has successfully convinced Doug that there are better ways to help people rather than running for Congress:

Brad Pitt killed his brother Doug’s political career before it even got started.

Instead of a job in Washington, Brad wants Doug to work by his side. Doug, 42, a respected businessman and philanthropist in the family’s hometown of Springfield, Mo. He recently saw his name emerge as a leading choice to run for Congress in Missouri’s conservative 7th district.

But with firm prodding from Brad, Doug put the kibosh on entering his name on the 2010 ballot, a source told the Enquirer.

“Brad has big plans for him and Doug,” the source says. “They’ve already worked on a few charitable projects together, and Brad wants to see them become even more involved as a team.”

“Brad felt if Doug was serving in Congress, anything they tried to do would smack of political cronyism.”

While Brad, 45, is a well-known liberal, Doug would have run as a Republican, says a friend. Doug jokingly needled his brother: “Is this your way of trying to keep another Republican out of Congress?”

Doug was intrigued with the idea of a political career, said the friend. “And with the respect that he has, and that famous last name, he would have been a shoo-in.”

“But Brad helped him see that there are other things he can do to help make the world a better place.”

The Pitts have worked together on community projects, but Brad wants Doug by his side not just for humanitarian reasons. He values his business experience and wants him to help with his film production enterprise.

“There’s no one on earth Brad trusts more than his brother,” said the source. “It Doug had headed to Washington as a politician, brad would have lost a trusted business partner.”

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, July 6 2009]

Honestly, I sort of believe this, and I sort of don’t. I’m not even sure Doug Pitt is really a Republican, but it’s conceivable. What I also find conceivable is that Doug might have had political ambitions. What I don’t buy is that Brad wouldn’t fully support whatever Doug wanted to do – and I don’t think Brad would refuse to support his brother just because of a “cronyism” charge. It doesn’t make much sense to me – but then again, I don’t live in a Steinbeck novel.

Photos are from Brad Pitt’s visit to the capital on 3/5/09. Credit: WENN>com

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14 Responses to “Did Brad Pitt convince his Republican brother not to run for Congress?”

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  1. RobN says:

    Hey Kaiser, you do know that 90% of your readership doesn’t get the Steinbeck reference, don’t you?

  2. Mel says:

    Oh…he just looks beautiful in these photos – takes my breath away…swoon!

  3. Iggles says:

    Man, this dude is like fine wine! He’s still hot, if not hotter than in his younger years!!!

  4. mum mum says:

    The recent donations could be interpreted as a serious positive SHOULD Doug run: Major donations to the city that you want to vote for you.

    In all seriousness, Doug would be able to make a bigger difference in the world if he’s not in congress.

    I guess this explains why the Brange never publicly declare their political stance.

  5. princess pee says:

    I am confused by the idea that Doug can do more good for the world outside of politics than he could in it. Are American politicians only good for scandal? Do they actually get paid big money to do NOTHING?

  6. Raven says:

    I can believe this. Brad has a certain cynicism about politics, which he has been more vocal in expressing in the past, before his own work in projects like the New Orleans one. I live a couple of hundred miles or so from Springfield and the area is extremely conservative. It is highly likely that the whole family is Republican except Brad, who was liberalized when he moved to the west coast. I could see Brad envisioning his brother running some sort of business/charitable empire at some point. In fact, the whole million dollar local donation that occurred there recently could have been the kickoff to something like that. It also could have given Brad the chance to show his family how much more could be done if Doug was not in Congress. And it would back up the conservative principles of focusing on the private sector for change rather than gov’t.

  7. Rosanna says:

    RobN I think percentages might be lower… around 80% 🙂

  8. Alison says:

    Being from Springfield and traveling in the same general circles as the Pitts, I’d be far more surprised at Doug not being a Republican than him being one.

  9. lmao says:

    lol @ the people saying he looks like fine wine. have you seen the pre botoxed pictures? HE looks plastic in these photos.

  10. someone says:

    Who knows??and who cares???

  11. kim says:

    Post botox or pre botox its all good

  12. mum mum says:

    @princess pea: I sense your humorous sarcasim and I like it. Answer is still yes.
    … Congress has way to much red tape do accomplish much worthwhile in the short time they’re “working.” As a private citzen, or head of a charitable Co., though, Doug could accomplish anything with his millions.

  13. elisha says:

    Brad Pitt is so not a “liberal democrat”. He endorsed Johny Kerry but hasn’t come out for any political party. I’m for Meg Whitman for California Gov, but am SO NOT a Republican. (I also am SO NOT a Democrat).

    So the real question here is… is this Doug Pitt you speak of single? jk

  14. Alison says:

    Alas, he’s quite married, and has some very cute kids.