Yesterday, George Clooney came to Capitol Hill to testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the border conflict between Sudan and South Sudan. Clooney has been beating the drum on this issue since he traveled to the region with his father, journalist and former Congressional candidate Nick Clooney, in 2006. You can read about his testimony here. Here’s a clip:

Although Clooney is a well-known Democrat who has directed two movies that deal explicitly with American politics (“Good Night and Good Luck” and “The Ides of March”) and is occasionally mentioned as a potential candidate himself, he has focused his activism mainly on this non-partisan issue. It’s a wise choice for a movie star of his magnitude, and, I would think, a way of keeping sane. The trappings of celebrity are such that the press never leaves you alone. If the press is going to report on everything you do, why not do something to bring attention to an issue that needs it? Kudos to Clooney.

While in Washington, he also visited privately with President Obama and attended last night’s state dinner for British PM David Cameron.

Here is a short video from Clooney’s most recent trip to South Sudan. No matter how skeptical we may get about the motives of movie stars taking up various causes, it’s hard to doubt his sincerity.