'Nobama' Empty Chair Owner: 'It's Just Eastwooding'

An empty chair with a 'Nobama' sign hanging from a tree has led to a great deal of discussion across the blogosphere, but the owner of the property tells Patch he is just trying to prevent theft. 

"It's just Eastwooding," said Douglas Burger, referring to Clint Eastwood's recent speech at the Republican National Convention, where the actor addressed an empty chair in a bit of political theater. (You can watch the video in the media box to the right.)

Told that some people see racial overtones in a chair hanging from a tree, Burger replied: "Not at all. They're up because otherwise people would steal them."

The Centreville resident, who has donated to the Republican National Committee and the Herman Cain and Mitt Romney campaigns, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, has three "Nobama" signs on display near Bull Run Post Office Road.

One of them is situated on a brick wall. After an attendee at a popular Korean festival emailed pictures of one of the chairs and its accompanying "Nobama" sign to the Blue Virginia blog, a number of Web sites, such as Gawker and Salon.com, posted articles on the issue. 

The chairs and signs also caught the attention of the Secret Service.

"We are aware of the incident and will be conducting the appropriate followup," George Ogilvie, a spokesperson for the Secret Service, told Patch. 

Burger said that he was just trying to protect his property. 

"Every time I put signs up at election time, people steal them," he said. 

Patch Editor Mary Ann Barton contributed to this story.