What has this to do with "Shut up and sing"? She's not preaching her personal ideology. She turned down an invitation from the President, which makes me think she's a frickin' vapid loon.
She meets with Bush and she can kiss any upcoming roles in Hollywood goodbye. You know how Hollywood is.
She turned down an invitation to a party fundraiser, not a walk in the Rose Garden. It pays to understand the difference between the two.
She turned down an invitation lest his appearence politicize an issue she cares about. Pres. Bush is one of the most polarizing political figures in recent memory; she could ill-afford to have that polarization turn off a public she relies upon both for this charity and her very livelihood.
Now, personally, I'd prefer she took the approach Bono takes - he'll talk to anyone who will listen about his issues (global poverty), leading to odd alliances between the rocker and Jesse Helms. That said, Jessica Simpson's judgment is not entirely faulty in this instance.
Perhaps you missed the part that said she "would be a no-show at a major Republican fund-raiser with Bush and congressional leaders..." Perhaps she would not have turned down a "private" meeting with the President.
Perhaps, but to be fair some people might see it that way. If celebrity X went to a fundraiser for Howard Dean, Hillary Clinton, or John Kerry, we wouldn't interpret it so charitably. That's why, I can see giving her the benefit of the doubt, since so many of us say, "shut up and sing." The unfortunate part is that it might seem like a snub, since it seems like she is withfrawing her commitment to go.
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And we didn't know that before?