The following is a transcript of actor Clint Eastwood's speech at the Republican National Convention on Aug. 30, 2012.

EASTWOOD: Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you

very much. Save a little for Mitt.

(APPLAUSE)

I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, what's a

movie tradesman doing out here? You know they are all left

wingers out there, left of Lenin. At least that is what people

think. That is not really the case. There are a lot of

conservative people, a lot of moderate people, Republicans,

Democrats, in Hollywood. It is just that the conservative

people by the nature of the word itself play closer to the vest.

They do not go around hot dogging it.

(APPLAUSE)

So -- but they are there, believe me, they are there. I

just think, in fact, some of them around town, I saw John Voigt,

a lot of people around.

(APPLAUSE)

John's here, an academy award winner. A terrific guy.

These people are all like-minded, like all of us.

So I -- so I've got Mr. Obama sitting here. And he's -- I

was going to ask him a couple of questions. But -- you know

about -- I remember three and a half years ago, when Mr. Obama

won the election. And though I was not a big supporter, I was

watching that night when he was having that thing and they were

talking about hope and change and they were talking about, yes

we can, and it was dark outdoors, and it was nice, and people

were lighting candles.

They were saying, I just thought, this was great.

Everybody is trying, Oprah was crying.

I was even crying. And then finally -- and I

haven't

cried that hard since I found out that there is 23 million

unemployed

people in this country.

(APPLAUSE)

Now that is something to cry for because that is a

disgrace, a

national disgrace, and we haven't done enough, obviously -- this

administration hasn't done enough to cure that. Whenever

interest

they have is not strong enough, and I think possibly now it may

be

time for somebody else to come along and solve the problem.

(APPLAUSE)

So, Mr. President, how do you handle promises that you have

made

when you were running for election, and how do you handle them?

I mean, what do you say to people? Do you just -- you know

-- I

know -- people were wondering -- you don't -- handle that OK.

Well, I

know even people in your own party were very disappointed when

you

didn't close Gitmo. And I thought, well closing Gitmo -- why

close

that, we spent so much money on it. But, I thought maybe as an

excuse

-- what do you mean shut up?

(LAUGHTER)

OK, I thought maybe it was just because somebody had the

stupid

idea of trying terrorists in downtown New York City.

(APPLAUSE)

I've got to to hand it to you. I have to give credit where

credit is due. You did finally overrule that finally. And

that's --

now we are moving onward. I know you were against the war in

Iraq,

and that's okay. But you thought the war in Afghanistan was OK.

You

know, I mean -- you thought that was something worth doing. We

didn't

check with the Russians to see how did it -- they did there for

10

years.

(APPLAUSE)

But we did it, and it is something to be thought about, and

I

think that, when we get to maybe -- I think you've mentioned

something about having a target date for bringing everybody

home. You

gave that target date, and I think Mr. Romney asked the only

sensible

question, you know, he says, ``Why are you giving the date out

now?

Why don't you just bring them home tomorrow morning?''

(APPLAUSE)

And I thought -- I thought, yeah -- I am not going to shut

up, it

is my turn.

(LAUGHTER)

So anyway, we're going to have -- we're going to have to

have a

little chat about that. And then, I just wondered, all these

promises

-- I wondered about when the -- what do you want me to tell

Romney? I

can't tell him to do that. I can't tell him to do that to

himself.

(APPLAUSE)

You're crazy, you're absolutely crazy. You're getting as

bad as

Biden.

(APPLAUSE)

Of course we all now Biden is the intellect of the

Democratic

party.

(LAUGHTER)

Kind of a grin with a body behind it.

(LAUGHTER)

But I just think that there is so much to be done, and I

think

that Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan are two guys that can come along.

See, I

never thought it was a good idea for attorneys to the president,

anyway.

(APPLAUSE)

I think attorneys are so busy -- you know they're always

taught

to argue everything, and always weight everything -- weigh both

sides...

MORE

(INSERT ZACH)

XXX I think attorneys are so busy -- you know they're

always taught to argue everything, always weigh everything,

weigh both sides.

EASTWOOD: They are always devil's advocating this and

bifurcating this and bifurcating that. You know all that stuff.

But, I think it is maybe time -- what do you think -- for maybe

a businessman. How about that?

(APPLAUSE)

A stellar businessman. Quote, unquote, ``a stellar

businessman.''

And I think it's that time. And I think if you just step

aside and Mr. Romney can kind of take over. You can maybe still

use a plane.

(APPLAUSE)

Though maybe a smaller one. Not that big gas guzzler you

are going around to colleges and talking about student loans and

stuff like that.

(APPLAUSE)

You are an -- an ecological man. Why would you want to

drive that around?

OK, well anyway. All right, I'm sorry. I can't do that to

myself either.

(APPLAUSE)

I would just like to say something, ladies and gentlemen.

Something that I think is very important. It is that, you, we

-- we own this country.

(APPLAUSE)

We -- we own it. It is not you owning it, and not

politicians owning it. Politicians are employees of ours.

(APPLAUSE)

And -- so -- they are just going to come around and beg

for votes every few years. It is the same old deal. But I just

think it is important that you realize , that you're the best in

the world. Whether you are a Democrat or Republican or whether

you're libertarian or whatever, you are the best. And we should

not ever forget that. And when somebody does not do the job, we

got to let them go.

(APPLAUSE)

Okay, just remember that. And I'm speaking out for

everybody out there. It doesn't hurt, we don't have to be

(AUDIENCE MEMBER): (inaudible)

(LAUGHTER)

I do not say that word anymore. Well, maybe one last time.

(LAUGHTER)

We don't have to be -- what I'm saying, we do not have to

be metal (ph) masochists and vote for somebody that we don't

really even want in office just because they seem to be nice

guys or maybe not so nice guys, if you look at some of the

recent ads going out there, I don't know.

(APPLAUSE)

But OK. You want to make my day?

(APPLAUSE)

All right. I started, you finish it. Go ahead.

AUDIENCE: Make my day!

EASTWOOD: Thank you. Thank you very much.