Penn Endorses Obama, Then Blasts Him

Sean Penn used his platform as president of the Cannes jury to express his excitement "by the hope that Barack Obama is inspiring," the Telegraph reports—though the firebrand actor-director also had some choice words for the Democratic candidate. Obama has much to live up to, Penn said, and accused the Illinois senator of a "phenomenally inhuman and unconstitutional" voting record.

Penn called the 2008 presidential race "the most important election, certainly in my lifetime, and maybe ever." He also used the press conference to excoriate the Bush administration and complain about France's new anti-tobacco legislation, which went unenforced as Penn chain-smoked through the press conference.