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For a CIA director with star power, the nominees are ...

If Obama wants to reach across the aisle, this is a no-brainer. Like Morgan Freeman and Harrison Ford, Clint Eastwood epitomizes American toughness and cool under fire. Sure, there was that dopey chair moment at the Republican National Convention. But hey, this guy has conquered the worst of the Wild West as the Man With No Name in classics like "High Plains Drifter" and "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," taken down the bad guys as Inspector Harry Callahan in "Dirty Harry" and its many sequels, fought for his country in "Kelly's Heroes" and "Heartbreak Ridge," protected the president in "In the Line of Fire" and even brought down a criminal president in "Absolute Power." You can just imagine him at a congressional hearing, growling, "Make my day, Senator!" Above: Clint Eastwood is seen speaking to an empty chair at the Republican National Convention on Aug. 30 in Tampa, Fla.

If Obama wants to reach across the aisle, this is a no-brainer. Like Morgan Freeman and Harrison Ford, Clint Eastwood epitomizes American toughness and cool under fire. Sure, there was that dopey chair moment at the Republican National Convention. But hey, this guy has conquered the worst of the Wild West as the Man With No Name in classics like “High Plains Drifter” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” taken down the bad guys as Inspector Harry Callahan in “Dirty Harry” and its many sequels, fought for his country in “Kelly’s Heroes” and “Heartbreak Ridge,” protected the president in “In the Line of Fire” and even brought down a criminal president in “Absolute Power.” You can just imagine him at a congressional hearing, growling, “Make my day, Senator!”

Above: Clint Eastwood is seen speaking to an empty chair at the Republican National Convention on Aug. 30 in Tampa, Fla.   (Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)

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David H. Petraeus may have been a genius as a general, but as a CIA director with an eye for the ladies (or, at least, an eye for his lady biographer) -- well, suffice to say he was no Allen Dulles. So who will take Petraeus’ place? Potential candidates reportedly include such inside-the-Beltway types as Jane Harman and Dick Lugar. But why so pedestrian, President Obama? Why not go outside the box -- all the way to Hollywood? You’ve treated it as a campaign ATM; how about a little payback? Here are eight stars with the chops to be the nation’s next spymaster. --Paul Whitefield

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