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LEAVING ATTITUDE BEHIND FOR POLITICS! Arnold gets serious for kids in need! Reported By: Assosiated Press Thursday, August 1, 2002 Reported by USA Today: WESTMINSTER, Calif. -- He's introduced to a sweltering audience as a superhero, but today he's wearing khakis and a white golf shirt. This isn't the Terminator, it's Uncle Arnold, seeking support in his new life as a political activist. Following in the footsteps of Rob ''Meathead'' Reiner, Arnold Schwarzenegger is committing his money, his fame and his time to a popular cause: after-school programs for children. ''Our children are not getting a fair shake,'' Schwarzenegger, 55, tells several hundred people at a multicultural festival in late June. He says half of kids up to age 14 may be unattended after school, leading them to crime, drugs, drinking, smoking, gangs and pregnancy. ''The way we stop that is to fill the vacuum,'' Schwarzenegger says and asks everyone to vote for the after-school initiative this fall. ''I hope that I can count on all of you. Thank you very much.'' Short pause. ''I'll be back.'' He tosses off the signature line with a slight smile, then moves offstage to a rope line. ''Arnold! Hey, Arnold,'' they call -- Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, small children and grown men, many waving posters and video boxes for him to sign. A few moments later, the actor-director-business mogul reflects on the differences between politics and show business. ''Promoting a movie is a more light thing, and you can stand there with a stogie in your mouth, and you can have the leather jacket on and the sunglasses, and you sell the show-business side of things.'' For the initiative, ditch the sunglasses, stogie and attitude: ''You're dealing with something serious, and you want to make sure that people take you more seriously because of that and see you as a leader on that subject rather than a Hollywood flake.'' The initiative would trigger more funding for after-school programs as state revenue grows and a surplus builds. The funds would increase from $85 million to more than $550 million a year. State analysts say the result would be ''a major fiscal effect of additional annual state costs.'' But Schwarzenegger says his plan would save as much as $10 in spending on kids for every $1 invested: ''As a fiscal conservative, that's very important to me.'' Schwarzenegger wrote his initiative, hired a dozen people to work on collecting signatures to get it on the ballot, rented them space in his Santa Monica office building and with his wife, reporter Maria Shriver, kicked in $1 million. He says celebrities deserve applause for using their natural talents in the political arena. ''How wonderful it is that people take their fame and give something back to the country or the world.'' Reiner's successful 1998 initiative to raise the tobacco tax and funnel the money to early childhood services was a great idea, Schwarzenegger says, and a perfect example of how shortsighted politicians can be. ''A guy from Hollywood, an actor, Meathead, has to come along and give them an idea, a vision,'' he says, referring to Reiner's character on All in the Family. The man known to millions as a killer robot in human skin has his own vision, of himself as governor of California. His contract to film Terminator 3 kept him out of this year's race. Some political observers suggest the next governor's race could see Reiner facing off with Schwarzenegger. ''I may be interested in running for something down the line,'' Schwarzenegger said a few days before he spoke to the Republican Governors Association this month. The publicity drawn by his child-friendly initiative, not to mention the statewide organization he's developing, can't hurt. As he tells his audience here, ''We have to stay hungry for more dreams.'' USA Today ---------- |