Maria Wants Arnold "BACK" At Home!
Shriver misses her Schwarzenegger!
Reported By: TheARNOLDFANS.com Staff
Monday, April 11, 2005

California First Lady Maria Shriver said Friday that having her husband serving as governor was hard on their family and that she would prefer to see Arnold Schwarzenegger "back home" instead of run for president.

Shriver's comments raised questions about whether she is encouraging her husband not to seek re-election next year. Schwarzenegger, a Republican, has opened an account to raise campaign funds, but he does not have to formally decide for several months.

Margita Thompson, a spokeswoman for the governor, said the governor is focused on his 2005 agenda and has not decided whether to run again.

"While I was always raised to believe that public service is the most noble calling, it's all-encompassing," Shriver said on "The Oprah Winfrey Show. "And it's tough, if you have young children. And it's a 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week job. I want him home."

Appearing on the show alongside her mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Shriver repeated several times that if she had her way, Schwarzenegger would devote more time to his family life and less to his public life.

Asked what she thought about the possibility of her Austria-born husband seeking the U.S. presidency if the Constitution were amended to allow it, for example, Shriver was unequivocal.

"I want him back home, actually," she said.

When Winfrey, a friend of Shriver's, followed up by asking, "You want him home?" Shriver responded: "I want him back."

The First Lady also offered a light-hearted glimpse into Schwarzenegger's style as a husband and father. One of Schwarzenegger's pet peeves, she said, is having clothes and shoes put away. He has called from the Capitol to check whether the children have done their laundry and hidden clothes or thrown them in the fireplace if they were not in their proper place when he returned.

Shriver and Schwarzenegger will celebrate their 19th wedding anniversary April 26. The governor spends three or four days a week in Sacramento, while Shriver and their four children live in Los Angeles' Brentwood district.

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TheARNOLDFANS.com Staff