Arnold Schwarzenegger as the 38th governor of California

 

On July 30th, 1947, in a small village bordering the Styrian capital Graz, in Austria, a boy called Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger first saw the light of the world. He was mistreated by his father, expected to be a police officer and his family life was anything but brilliant. At the time, if anyone had predicted that one day, this boy would grow up to become the 38th governor of the American state of California, they would probably have been mocked and ridiculed.

Early life

The connection between Arnold and his family was close to nonexistent, even though he did keep in touch with his mother until she died. He was mistreated by his father; beating children was considered normal at the time. As a boy, he played many sports and he started his competitive bodybuilding career at the very young age of 17. He started winning titles soon after, such as the Junior Mr Europe and the best built man of Europe. Schwarzenegger admitted to the use of steroids during his bodybuilding career multiple times. He stayed in London for a while to improve the very thick Austrian accent he had at the time, as well as his body build. At age twenty-one, he moved to the USA, the country where all of his big dreams were to come true. Apart from a bodybuilding career that was still on the rise, Schwarzenegger made it big in acting and even earned himself a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He starred in many action films and became a very popular actor, especially through the character he is most famous for impersonating, Terminator. However, Schwarzenegger became a millionaire well before he became a Hollywood star, at the age of thirty. He even went to university and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Superior with a degree in Business and International Economics, in 1979.
Politics
Schwarzenegger has been said to have been registered as a Republican ever since hearing Nixon speak in his presidential debate against Humphrey. The first official political position that Schwarzenegger ever took was chairman of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports – of course, who could have thought of a better person to fill that position? In the 2003 recall election for Governor of California, Schwarzenegger placed his candidacy. Although he was famous as a bodybuilder and an actor, his political views were widely unknown to people. Nevertheless, he managed to win the vote and become the first Governor of California who wasn’t born in the US since 1862. During the time he served, he had to go from being radically Republican to a bit more moderate so as to be able to find a consensus with other people. In the 2006 election, Schwarzenegger was reelected. It has been said that his political views are turning more towards the left side. Another thing, although completely unrelated, that has been rumored, is that Schwarzenegger may run for the United States senate in 2010. Schwarzenegger has a double Austrian/American citizenship and very much identifies with his newfound American nationality. He also refuses to accept his governor’s salary, donating it to charity instead. Schwarzenegger repeatedly showed by signing various bills and taking other measures that he was concerned by the environment and the state it is in these days.
Of course, as with any politician, there have been incidents that were not as brilliant. In 2005, it was suggested the Austrian citizenship be taken away from Schwarzenegger because of his tendency to fight for the death penalty.

Despite allegations of inappropriate behavior in public, Schwarzenegger remains a very popular figure in California and in all of America. Today, he is married to Maria Shriver and has four children. He is as dedicated in his work as ever, and some even wish for the constitution to be amended so that Arnold, despite his Austrian descent, can run for the presidential elections, something many would like to see him do. Schwarzenegger’s story is a very typical example of the ‘self-made man’, as he received no help and no reassurance whatsoever from his family. It took him a long time to work his way up, but now he’s living the American Dream.