Arnold Schwarzenegger steps down as California “governator” today, defending his record to the last — and keeping fans and others guessing about his next move.
After seven years at the helm of the Golden State, the former champion body builder turned Terminator movie megastar and businessman is leaving his adopted home mired in huge financial woes.
But in a newspaper interview to mark his handover of power to Democrat Jerry Brown — two months after Nov. 2 polls — Arnie stood by all his decisions.
Get daily National news
“The important thing with my job that I’ve had for the last seven years is, you have to have passion. . . . You can’t be afraid,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “You have to recognize very quickly that political risk-taking is not political suicide.”
While he impressed many with his transformation into a liberal Republican and green champion who won re-election in 2006, his poll ratings slid in recent years, in line with California’s dire economic fortunes.
A budget crisis in 2010 pushed California, which would have been the world’s eighth largest economy if it were a country, to the brink of bankruptcy, sending its credit rating plunging and forcing it to pay bills with IOUs.
But while commentators will pick over Schwarzenegger’s political legacy here, many are watching closely to see what the 63-year-old will do next — notably whether he will return to the movies.
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.