“The Namesake” star and a long-time supporter of US President Barack Obama is joining the White House as an Associate Director in the Office of Public Liaison, with the tasks of connecting the President’s administration with the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities and arts and entertainment groups.
According to a White House official, Penn, who had a recurring role on Fox's popular TV show "House", is the only such appointee for the Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities.
”They do outreach with the American public and with different organizations," Penn told Entertainment Weekly (EW) about Office of Public Liaison. "They're basically the front door of the White House. They take out all of the red tape that falls between the general public and the White House."
To take up this position, Penn said he will be leaving the 'House' show. His character in the show committed suicide in Monday's episode.
In a conference call with reporters on Tuesday, Penn said: "I was having a great time" on the ‘House’ show…The word I still use to describe it is bittersweet. It's not like I'm retiring from acting. I certainly intend to come back at some point. Right now, I just felt like my calling was in public service."
Penn, who starred as Kumar in the movie "Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay", added: "There's not a lot of financial reward in these jobs. But, obviously, the opportunity to serve in a capacity like this is an incredible honour."
Although, the White House has not yet revealed what Penn would be paid, aides with similar titles earned between $41,000 and $91,000 last year. It is not yet known on what date Penn will start Working at the Office of Public Liaison.
Born Kalpen Suresh Modi to Indian immigrant parents from Gujarat, Penn was one of the leading Indian Americans to have campaigned aggressively for Obama during the presidential election.
The actor also told EW that his interest in politics is a family tradition. "I've been thinking about [moving into politics] for a while. I love what I do as an actor. I couldn't love it more. ...probably from the time I was a kid, I really enjoyed that balance between the arts and public service.
"It's probably because of the value system my grandparents instilled in me. They marched with Gandhi in the Indian independence movement, and that was always in the back of my head. So the past couple of years I thought about it a little more."
Meanwhile, Penn said he is heading to Washington next week to start searching for an apartment.
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