GEORGE CLOONEY - GEORGE CLOONEY'S FATHER TO RUN FOR CONGRESS

GEORGE CLOONEY's father NICK has announced plans to run for the US Congress from a district in northern Kentucky.

Clooney, 67, brother of late singer ROSEMARY CLOONEY, will campaign as a Democrat to succeed three-term incumbent KEN LUCAS, who backed Clooney's candidacy in his retirement announcement.

Democrat Lucas says of Clooney, "(He's) a fresh face on the political scene who is intelligent, articulate, highly respected, and above all, passionate."

Clooney, a former Cincinnati, Ohio, TV news anchorman who currently writes a column for the CINCINNATI POST, has never before run for public office. He will be taking a leave of absence from the newspaper, according to a Post editor.

Clooney, who will tour the district with his wife NINA to get acquainted with voters, says in a statement, "I will tell you what I believe to be the truth, whether you agree with me or not, whether it is politically correct or not, whether an election hinges on it or not."