Actor Richard Dreyfuss: ‘I Ceased Being a Democrat a While Ago’

(CNSNews.com) – Academy Award-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss, who is spearheading a nationwide civics education initiative, said he is no longer a Democrat and that he sees little difference between the two main political parties in the United States.

At the National Press Club on Tuesday, CNSNews.com asked Dreyfuss the following about President Barack Obama, ““Do you think he’s losing the [political] left due to his continuation of the Bush policies?”

Dreyfuss said, “You know, again, I’m not a follower of current affairs in that way. I ceased being a Democrat a while ago, and thought that it would hurt this [civics] endeavor, and because I thought that there was very little difference between the two parties.”

Actor Richard Dreyfus at the Big Apple Convention in Manhattan, June 8, 2008. (Wikipedia Commons)

“I used to think that voting was the be all and end all of citizenship," said Dreyfuss. "And now I think citizenship is far more complex, far more constant, far more boring, far more filled with failure and those rare victories, and that that’s the greatness of being a good citizen is the willingness to work hard at something that is hard.”

Dreyfuss gave an exclusive interview to CNSNews.com following his speech on civic education and civility in politics as part of his “Dreyfuss Initiative,” at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.