Arnold Schwarzenegger Teaches President Bush A Lesson In Hollywood Loyalty
Jay Leno offered fellow lantern-jawed, hog-enthusiast buddy Arnold Schwarzenegger another network opportunity to charm the pants off voters on last night's Tonight Show, angering Democratic challenger Phil Angelides (sorry Phil—get a Q-rating or some funny zoo animals, then we'll talk), but nevertheless managing to delight the millions of Californians who insist their leaders address them in an endless string of 1980's action movie catchphrases. Aware that the President's low approval rating is one of his opponent's greatest weapons, Schwarzenegger made sure to distance himself from George W. Bush, using yet another Hollywood metaphor to help us grasp the absurdity of the concept:
"To link me to George Bush is like linking me to an Oscar," the former bodybuilder and Hollywood action star joked during an appearance on NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." "That's ridiculous."
With that one savvy wisecrack, Schwarzenegger demonstrated why his charming cocktail of self-deprecating humor and showbiz razzle-dazzle will win out over the boring prospects of job qualifications and legislative effectiveness any day. Luckily for the Governor, however, Jay Leno's set is a hardball-free zone, and so he was required to do little explaining as to whether or not the enthusiastic campaigning he did for George W. Bush's 2004 Presidential bid could somehow be interpreted as a "link." Should the accusation arise in the future, however, Arnold has a response fully prepared, in which he'll explain that any past showings of support for the President are "ancient history, much like my Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, for 1995's woefully underrated pro-life satire, Junior."
