Deficit terminator Schwarzenegger reviews new 'Terminator' movie
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been busy in recent days combating the dread budget shortfall by terminating 10,000 state jobs and proposing an immediate one-cent "temporary" multiyear increase in the state sales tax
, legislative sources have told The Times' Evan Halper and Nancy Vogel.
The estimated $15.2-billion budget gap may be among the worst monsters the actor has faced since he left the "Terminator" movie series after parts I, II and III and won the audition for governor.
Schwarzenegger's current role comes to an end at the close of 2010, thanks to term limits. And it may be just as well, since he's long maintained he'd never raise taxes.
Our clever blogging colleague Geoff Boucher over at the new Hero Complex sat down the other day with the former actor, former bodybuilder and got his reaction to early rushes of the fourth in the "Terminator" series, "Terminator Salvation," which does not star himself because everyone knows he got melted in one of the other ones.
Schwarzenegger sounded puzzled by what he saw of the new clips, now being filmed in New Mexico with Christian Bale and due out next year.
"I didn't see enough," the governor said. "I wasn't sure who the Terminator was. I don't know if there is one or if he's the star or the hero. These are the things that determine the success and how strong the movie will be."
Boucher and Schwarzenegger talked about many things in the interview, including the governor's favorite recent movies and stars. (He loves Will Ferrell.)
But, in the end, the governor maintains he's moved on from acting. "When this movie comes out," he said, "I won't be sitting there saying, 'Why can't I do that?' I hope it makes a lot of money and is very successful."
Ah, but what about "Terminator 5: The Return"?
You can read the entire interview here.
-- Andrew Malcolm
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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it has been suggested that arnold schwarzenegger's name, based on his poetic native alpine language, in approximation translates to, 'a foreigner is born a star to the eyes of never-never-land.'
what could that mean?
attacks on the american republic, and constitutional freedoms, might come from without and within. that a nation inherit liberty, prosperity, and peace does not exempt the people from their own responsibility. life itself provides their entitlement to earn and keep what is their birthright, by protecting and defending it, staying vigilant, making conscious and responsible choices. this is the pursuit of happiness. it involves the awareness that things have meanings - the things people say, and the things people do - even 'action hero movies.' meanings have consequences, and offers not declined can be taken as a mandate to impose them. watch your eyes, if you will.
Posted by: dave | August 05, 2008 at 04:44 AM