Friday
(0)Mr Schwarzenegger has been avoiding stating his proposed policies, to reduce California's debt mountain, in his play for the California state governorship role, and he's had a public row with Warren Buffet, his economics adviser, on property taxes. But even if just for Friday entertainment value, check out these latest quotes:
"I feel the people of California have been punished enough. From the time they get up in the morning and flush the toilet they're taxed."
Zing!
"I teach my children not to spend more money than they have. That's what I will teach Sacramento."
Bosh!
Combine those sound-bites with some he delivered a few days ago:
"I am more comfortable with an Adam Smith philosophy than with Keynesian theory."
Splat!
"I still believe in lower taxes — and the power of the free market."
Yowzer!
Ok, until someone can actually nail him down on his policies, we must reserve judgement on the larger-than-life mega-star, especially as he keeps neatly side-stepping the really difficult questions on taxation with a "we can never say never" line. But if you retain even the slightest Churchillian belief that democracy is the least bad of all of the systems of government, things are becoming increasingly interesting in the Golden State.
And Mr Arnold "Arnie" Rimmer, of the future mining space ship Red Dwarf, is certainly getting plenty of newspaper headlines to cut out and keep, to impress all of his friends with!
I think the man's a genius. They should change the law so he can become President. There's nothing bad or stupid about being popular, rich, famous, entertaining, muscly, successful or born outside the US. Go Arnie!
Posted by Alice Bachini at August 22, 2003 02:45 PM
Hi Alice,
I suspect that if Arnie does make it to Sacramento, he may get the law changed to allow himself to be made President. I don't know if Washington, Jefferson, and all the other early Presidents were born in the US, but if not, perhaps Arnie will use their foreign birth as a Precedent to becoming President himself! :-)
(sorry)
Posted by Andy Duncan at August 22, 2003 03:17 PM
Yep. Every man jack of 'em was born here. They're the ones who made that rule, after all, and it won't be changing anytime soon.
Personally, I'd prefer to choose my president from among the large pool of individuals whose penises I have not seen, anyway.
Posted by S. Weasel at August 22, 2003 03:21 PM
Alice, bless you, but there is NO FUCKING WAY a real American would agree to let a foreign born citizen run for President...anymore than the British would allow Jenna or Barbara Bush to become the next Princess of Wales. Arnold is a Good Guy on film and off, but I have yet to see any solid offerings of genuine leadership and/or conservatism that would uphold the interests of the state of California. What he has been saying has been pleasing and nice, but the way a baseball star swings his bat is NOT the way he gets to third base!
Oh, and I LOVE RED DWARF AND CHRIS BARRIE. Am looking forward to the rest of the seasons' release on DVDs
Posted by Sharon Ferguson at August 22, 2003 06:40 PM
Actually, I tend to doubt that most folks would care that much one way or another about voting for a foreign-born candidate.
I note that Jennifer Granholm, the Governor of Michigan, is a rising star in the Democratic party who would be on the short list of Presidential prospects if it were not for her Canadian birth. There has been some grumbling on the Dem side of the fence about the Constitutional bar on furriners being President, but I cannot imagine sufficient political momentum to amend the Consitutition on that point.
Posted by R.C. Dean at August 22, 2003 06:47 PM
Sharon,
Your chief point is duly noted. However,
"anymore than the British would allow Jenna or Barbara Bush to become the next Princess of Wales."
The vast majority of Brits don't give a rat's patootie about anything except soap-opera trivia. If Mullah Omar was appointed Deputy Prime Minister it would get a brief mention on the six o'clock news and then be promptly forgotten about.
Posted by David Carr at August 22, 2003 06:53 PM
The constitution says:
No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.
If we want to make Arnold president, we need a constitutional amendment.
Posted by Eric at August 22, 2003 07:42 PM
Who wants to have a little wager on Arnies chances of getting elected?. Not that I am offering odds, but you may be able to get quite good odds on his failing his mission.
I don't think he will make it, he has all the signs of being a 'stalking horse' for the Dems.
Consider - He still has not voiced his policies, and it is very doubtful whether he has any, or if he will ever have any.
The Dems are happy seeing him strutting and posturing, and see him as splitting the Repubs vote, Bustamente is the man they have decided to back, and the man they fear winning is Bill Simon, hence Arnie running with out being in any way prepared is seen as a good thing by the Dems, as he would split the Republican vote and thus prevent Simon winning.
The Hollywood crowd have yet to spit their venom at Arnie, when they do, (in the last three weeks of the election),we may well see a different story emerge. It appears that, already he is having difficulty in finding enough backers.
The question is, is he a party to being made a 'stalking horse', or a 'sacrificial lamb' even, through the gentle persuasion of his wife and her friends, or does he really think he has what it takes to be Governor?. All very debateable.
Terminator 4 is already on the stocks and Terminator without Arnie is unthinkable, so which one is he reallys serious about?
Worth a wager , if the odds are right..
No Alice, Arnie only 'plays' The Terminator, he isn't really a machine... (some wimmin!)
Posted by ernest young at August 22, 2003 09:59 PM
Ernest.. I have to disagree with you.
Bill Simon is the one Davis wanted to run against in the general election. That's why he spent $10M sliming Riordan during the primary.
Posted by Dishman at August 22, 2003 10:30 PM
Dishman,
Who was the Repub who ran Davis close last time around?. That's the guy I meant...
I getting so old I can't remember names now....
Anyway - it's California, who cares?.
Posted by ernest young at August 22, 2003 11:02 PM
Alice, bless you, but there is NO FUCKING WAY a real American would agree to let a foreign born citizen run for President
As an American, I disagree. I think Margaret Thatcher could have won in 1988 as President if she were eligible, and if Tony Blair were eligible he would have nearly had a lock on the 2004 Democratic nomination after Gore withdrew, until he supported Bush on the Iraq war.
Posted by Tom at August 22, 2003 11:47 PM
"Alice, bless you, but there is NO FUCKING WAY a real American would agree to let a foreign born citizen run for President"
That doesn't exclude the British, though. After all, you're just a bunch of uppity ex-pats...
Posted by Ron at August 23, 2003 12:52 AM
"That doesn't exclude the British, though. After all, you're just a bunch of uppity ex-pats..."
Oh great, now ur trying to make personal comments against us. Believe me, u Americans are way too stereotypically orientated.
An I just wanna point out that us brits really wouldnt care about who was the new princess of wales. As long as she didnt go round hogging all the front pages of newspapers and stayed out of the way.
Posted by Simple Simon at September 21, 2003 05:23 PM
All I can say is God Help America...sigh
Anyone seriously thinking this guy is a 'genius' needs their head testing. How do you Californians feel now it's all become a reality?
Posted by Don Gramma at October 8, 2003 04:22 PM
Dont knock who the british would or wouldnt mind being the next Princess of Wales!
How can you guys talk when you elected (or didnt elect as the case may be) George "bring on world war three - it would be great business" Bush.
You guys have a monkey on strings as you president, Satan as Defense Secretary. And you worried about The Terminator being the Govenor of Cali. Last of your worries!
Posted by jon at October 12, 2003 04:23 PM
