The real Charlie Wilson weighs in on Tom Hanks, the Middle East, and the benefits of having an attractive staff.

Retired Congressman Charlie Wilson is portrayed by Tom Hanks in Charlie Wilson's War, which is out on DVD now. With some help from the CIA, Wilson was instrumental in covertly funding the Afghani military operation against the Soviet Union. The story after that success gets a little murkier, but over the phone this week I had a chance to ask him a few questions and get some enlightening answers.

Laremy Legel: I read somewhere that you still have a Stinger Missile.

Ret. Congressman Charlie Wilson: You bet! But I don't have the rocket engine in it so we're all safe.

LL: What did you think of the tone of Charlie Wilson's War?

CW: I thought it was terrific. It hit the nail on the head ... and apparently the tone has made Charlie Wilson's War a lot more successful than the other war movies that have come out.

LL: How did Tom Hanks get involved?

CW: He bought the [rights to the] book so it was up to him whether he played me or not. I didn't know whether he would ... but I was thrilled when he did.

LL: One of the major aspects to this movie is the endgame, and it seems like we've blown the endgame yet again with our involvement in Afghanistan after 9/11.

CW: Totally. Because they were doing a terrific job until Iraq came along and drained them of their resources. Not only military resources but civilian resources for reconstruction.

LL: Is it odd to you how much money we put into winning these wars but not rebuilding afterwards?

CW: It's terrible, just terrible. Americans are generous and industrious and productive, but we have the world's shortest attention span. If we could ever get Iraq over with I would hope whatever administration comes next would put the resources back [into rebuilding Afghanistan].

LL: Are you following the election?

CW: Sure.

LL: Care to comment at all?

CW: Only to say that I voted for [Senator] Obama.

LL: Another major theme was the way in which you initially skirted the White House to fund the Afghan resistance ... but at some point you must have had tacit White House approval under President Reagan, right?

CW: Yes, we did, about half-way through. The CIA came around too. The Saudis were just terrific too, they matched every dollar. The final bookkeeping, the last year, we put a billion dollars in and they put a billion dollars in. In an insurgency that goes a long way. We were buying Soviet made weapons all over the world at really cut rate prices. Gust Avrakotos [played by Philip Seymour Hoffman in the film] was very creative and always got the lowest price. We made it work.

LL: In the film your staff is extremely attractive and some research revealed that this was an accurate detail too.

CW: You just have to work at it. There are so many people in Washington D.C. that want jobs that you can arrange it so you don't get depressed when you come into work everyday.

LL: What message do you hope comes across with this film?

CW: One message would be if Congress could be somewhat bipartisan and avoid damaging leaks to the press they could get an enormous amount done. That is the principal message.

And with that our time was up. Congressman Wilson seemed warm and straightforward throughout our short conversation -- here's hoping one day I get to join him for a meal so we can really get into the issues of our time.

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