73-year-old actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has opened up about the recent recall of current governor Gavin Newsom. He also opened up about reality star Caitlyn Jenner bidding for the seat.
It was announced on Monday that the signature threshold was met for a recall vote, the requirement set at just under 1.5 million. It was just a few days before that when Jenner officially announced her bid. A spokesperson for Schwarzenegger tells Fox News, “Governor is friends with both Newsom and Jenner and wants to stay neutral, and as the Chairman of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy he is committed to advancing post-partisanship.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s thoughts on California governor recall
Schwarzenegger won the seat in a 2003 recall vote himself and previously opened up about that recall and Newsom’s. “It’s pretty much the same atmosphere today as it was then,” he told Politico recently. “There was dissatisfaction, to the highest level. … And it’s the same with the momentum. Something that sets it off to a higher level, kind of the straw that breaks the camel’s back … like an explosion.”
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He also has some advice for Newsom facing the recall: “The only advice I have for him is that he’s doing a good job now,” he says. “That he has improved his connection with the people, and that he should continue on being real — being himself, and to really always just think about the people — and not about the unions, not about the party, not about any of that — just the people. And to solve the problems. Solve the problems.”
He notes that a large portion of the drop in Newsom’s public approval has a lot to do with the pandemic at large. He compares the situation to when he took a hit at his own public approval back in the 2008 financial crisis.