The "Liberal" Attack on Arnold.......

September 1, 2003
by Debra Opri - Attorney and Legal Analyst

Here it is only a few weeks into the recall campaign, and already the political sharks are circling. It seems that unless Arnold starts talking specifics [plainly speaking: he starts "answering" the media's questions as to details], he is the damned. And, how about all that talk about his sex life in the 1970's? Are we really that interested? Should we be?

On a recent flight from LA to New York; laden down with my usual 5 newspapers and numerous magazines, I had the seeming misfortune of identifying in the editorial section of the New York Times [what Ann Coulters labels the "liberal" newspaper] quite a few articles by people "in the know" [people who said they had a personal and negative history of dealing with Schwarzenegger.] Quite frankly, this attack on Mr. Schwarzenegger focused on his character. The message was an interesting affront; that he had a long time reputation of telling everyone anything he wanted them to hear to help further his own agenda.

In the first "editorial" by a wanna be older generation weight lifter who had at one time in the very distant past, attended a seminar where Arnold appeared, he states he relied upon Arnold's explicit instructions as to how to increase the size of his biceps. This gentleman stated that Arnold's instructions blatantly contradicted everyone else's. Specifically, that rather than resting the muscles more and with less repetitions, this older gentleman should do more repetitions and with greater weights, only to find that the man's muscles atrophied from overuse and actually got smaller, based on Arnold's instructions..

This example was then analogized to what Arnold would tell the California voters as to what was actually the truth and what he wanted them to hear. Huh?

Arnold has been playing the strategy game close to his muscular chest. He has kept the non-specific information coming out according to his timing and to his agenda. He has been bold enough to challenge all those who demand the specifics from him, telling everyone, "the public doesn,t care about that." He has anointed himself the voice of the people by telling them he knows they really don't want or need to hear the details, and so why bother with the details.

I don't know about the politicians, but I think Mr. Swarzenegger has a winning strategy. When it comes right down to it, who really can care in a short five week campaign. The people don't want specifics; they want someone in office they like and who they know and trust.

This is not such a bad strategy, folks. People really do like Arnold. He's charming, good looking, successful........everybody loves a winner. Reflections of Reagan? Clinton, even? Perhaps, but mostly, it's the public's need to lean on a celebrity and live vicariously through him, especially in the bad times..

Just think how much fun it will be with a superstar action hero governor? Just think how much more fun for this superstar action hero to be governor of a state that hails the movies and fantasy as major revenue? Just think how much fun us Californians will have not having to think about all these details of "reality" for a long time. Why bother when we have the "Terminator" coming to our homes to save us?

Why don't we all think about that simplistic piece of reality when considering our responsibilities as taxpayers and voters. With this recall fiasco, we really don't have time to think of anything else. It's really that bad here in California. We have to get past the recall, we have to move on. We have to, otherwise, it will be a pay it forward, in reverse...a chain reaction to certain doom.