BTW, did anyone see Arnold on Larry King last night...Transcript follows...He was really on target....Glad he is running, even if there is no recall..he is refreshing! (Part 1 of 2)
CNN LARRY KING LIVE
Interview With Arnold Schwarzenegger
Aired September 17, 2003 - 21:00 ET
cnn.com
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LARRY KING, HOST: Tonight Arnold Schwarzenegger, the man everybody's talking about, talks. Arnold Schwarzenegger for the hour, next on LARRY KING LIVE.
It's always a great pleasure to welcome Arnold Schwarzenegger. He's been on this program frequently in the past, but never as a candidate for the Republican -- to be the Republican governor of the state of California.
By the way, let's get the thing current. The three-judge panel ruled that the recall should go to March. And now there's an appeal, and the California secretary of state has joined the recall performance in urging a federal appeals court to reverse.
What do you think they're going to do?
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I think that the will of the people will come through. I mean, I think it's very important the people have signed -- you know 1.6 million people have signed the petition to recall Gray Davis. I don't think that the judges can go against that. You know I think it would be a big mistake.
KING: Does it bother you, though, that some elements in the state will be forced to vote differently than others, that people will have to deal with chads and the kind of confusion Florida had? Doesn't that bother you?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, no. I mean, the thing is that it's the very same system that has elected Davis and Bustamante the last time, so how bad can it be, right? I mean, it's the same system, so why change it now?
So I think they should move forward. I think that we have to listen to what the people want. And the people very clearly, have said we want to have a recall. I think if you look at the polls, that 55 to 60 percent of the people who say they want to have a recall. So I think it will be a mistake, like I said, you know, to now change that.
For me, in my mind, you know, there's...
(CROSSTALK)
SCHWARZENEGGER: Exactly. I focus on October 7. To me, that's the election. I will campaign for that particular day. And I think in the end that will be the election date.
KING: If it does switch to March, you're not going to change it? You're still going to keep campaigning, right?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes. Well, first of all, I don't even think about that. You know my mind, the way I work in competitions and all those things.
(CROSSTALK)
KING: I know.
SCHWARZENEGGER: There are certain things I don't think about, hypothetical things, because I think there is just so much work right now to be done. And you know we have to zero in on that date and make sure to get the message out there, do enough interviews, travel around the state, and really campaign. And so we are set for that date.
KING: So that's the focus.
SCHWARZENEGGER: That's what I'm focusing on...
KING: You say you'll be disappointed if that were to change.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I think the Californians will be disappointed, and I think that everyone, because we have now spent money, we have now campaigned, you know, for the October 7 date.
KING: What do you make of those who say the recall, if you don't recall for something like criminal acts, you could have a mass recall. You could start recalling people all over the country just because you don't like the way they govern.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I think that a recall, that it qualified. It was actually a shot that rang out throughout the country. You know, to all the Democrats and Republicans alike. It's a message that became very clear to -- you do your job and represent the people and if you don't, you're going to get voted out. There will be a recall.
KING: So you like that concept?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes, I think it is good. I mean, you have to understand that -- for instance, in California, Hiram Johnson came up with that whole idea because of special interests and powerful interests, industries 90-plus years ago, and have controlled politicians here in California. They set up the candidates, they controlled them and manipulated them because they had all the money.
So that's why this recall came about in the first place. And now today we have the same situation, that nothing gets done, people are very dissatisfied about what's going on in Sacramento right now. That's why -- you know there were many attempts made in the past about having a recall, but none of them have gone to the extent to where it is now.
There are 1.6 million people who signed up. And the polls show very clearly that they want to have change.
KING: But what you're saying is that if the people of Nebraska feel that way or Montana, they are welcome to do the same thing.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, not every state has...
(CROSSTALK)
KING: But if you have it...
SCHWARZENEGGER: But if they do have it, yes, absolutely. I think that what happened is in California, I mean, the Davis- Bustamante administration has pulled wool over people's eyes twice. And, as you know, in California, we have a three-strike system. The third time, out they go.
KING: Have you had any thoughts since entering the race -- what surprised you so far about running? You never ran for office.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I think -- no, I have not, no. So you never know what to expect. I think that the egg throwing was one of the surprises. You know, when it was done in Long Beach at the university.
KING: Yes.
SCHWARZENEGGER: That was a surprise. It was like this thing and I just moved on. But I was amazed about that.
And the other thing I think the big surprise was over the three judges saying, you know, that the recall would be postponed. But...
KING: But has anything surprised you about running, about the whole concept of campaigning, appearing, appearances?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No.
KING: Your personal life examined.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, no. I think that you know all of those things when you go into a race. I mean, you know that they're going to examine your life. You know that they do opposition research and that the other candidates continuously try to hammer away and distract people from the real issues and get them away and come in with all this other stuff from your background, what did you say when you were four years old to your mother while she was feeding you. And what happened in 1977, what happened in...
KING: So that didn't surprise you?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No. I think that I knew that, because when you make the decision to run, you have to think about all those things. And I had, you know, many, many discussions with my wife, with Maria, who has been such a jewel in this campaign and such a great support system. We even talked to the kids about that. What would that mean? You may hear bad things in school from other kids and all this. So we talked about this. So it's not really a surprise. I also knew that it would be a lot of work, a lot of studying, trying to really get up to speed with the issues and all those kinds of things. So I work sometimes to midnight and read and study.
Now I sit on the Lifecycle, for instance, in the morning at 6:00 and ride an hour of the Lifecycle and have my papers in front of me and not watch TV. So, you know, I knew those things would happen.
KING: How close did you come to not running?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Actually, it was going back and forth, Larry.
KING: Even today?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, not today, no. But I think it was going back and forth because for 14 days -- you see, throughout the whole promotion of "Terminator," I always kind of like blocked it out. I always said to people, "I don't want to deal with this right now. We don't even know if a recall will happen. We don't even know if we'll get enough signatures and all that."
So then I came back I remember after my trip to Mexico City, and that was my first -- that was my last stop for the promotion of "T3." I came back and then after that I heard that now there is a recall. So that's when I sat down with my family, with Maria, with my friends, and we talked about -- I called a lot of friends and talked about that. About what the pros and the cons are. But then in the end, you know, it just was in my heart and it was in my gut. And Maria said to me, "Whatever is in your gut, you should go with that."
KING: And no regrets?
SCHWARZENEGGER: I have no regrets, no.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHWARZENEGGER: Larry, this has been a really exciting thing so far. I mean, it's a great learning experience. Then it's a refreshing thing to do. And then to be in touch with the people out there, to travel up and down the state and to talk to people and to listen first hand, I never heard those kinds of complaints.
I never heard people talk to me about the pain they go through, the suffering with their businesses, how their profit margins are shrinking, the things that farmers go through, about the water rights, about the pollution, about the energy, about all of those kinds of things. And about them being squeezed. So this has been really fascinating...
KING: Let me get a break.
SCHWARZENEGGER: ... and one of the great experiences.
KING: We'll be right back with Arnold Schwarzenegger. He's a candidate for the Republican -- to be the Republican candidate for governor of California. Well, he's a candidate to be the governor, because if he wins and the recall -- if they accept the recall and he wins, he wins no matter what the -- whoever gets the most votes wins. There's no runoff.
We'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHWARZENEGGER: We are the luckiest people on Earth because we live in a country that we, the people, have the right to decide if the politicians are...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHWARZENEGGER: Are we going to win in unity with our common fiscal conservative principles?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GRAY DAVIS (D) CALIFORNIA: He clearly doesn't have very much experience in public life. And I can tell you that recycling old lines from movies only gets you so far.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GOV. CRUZ BUSTAMANTE (D), CALIFORNIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Arnold doesn't share our values. He doesn't live lives like we do. He doesn't have the same worries that we have. He won't fight for our families, our neighborhoods, our schools. He doesn't understand our lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: That was Mr. Bustamante, preceded by the governor. Want to respond? You don't understand what the average guy goes through?
SCHWARZENEGGER: First of all, let me just say to you that I like when politicians up there, like Davis and Bustamante, talk about experience and about details. What has gotten us to the situation that we are in right now with this disastrous economic situation? And we have the worst credit rating, we have the hugest budget deficit, businesses are leaving, jobs are leaving. What has gotten us in this situation? All their experience. Think about that.
So it's experience and it's all the details that they have that's gotten us into this situation. That is the big problem. They think that they have a lock on their job. They think that you have to work your way through the halls of Sacramento to get to that job. But they're wrong, because the people are sick and tired of the politicians up there. They're disappointed about what they have accomplished in these last few years, and this is why they want a recall.
KING: When they say you don't understand the common man, you're not the common man.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, first of all, as you know, that I've been involved out there with issues for so many years.
KING: Education mostly.
SCHWARZENEGGER: And remember that I've traveled around the world, America and the world, for the last 20 years to work with Special Olympics, to work with people with mental disabilities. I was the national coach and have become the international coach. I've become the torchbearer for them.
I've become the ambassador, traveling all around the world, including -- I was just two years ago in South Africa with Nelson Mandela, driving around to increase the amount of special Olympians, so they could have equality, respect, and they can have regular jobs and get good education and all that stuff, which is an organization, as you know, my mother-in-law started. And also with after school programs.
I was with the president's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and I was the chairman. I traveled through all 50 states. I don't think any of those two guys have ever traveled all 50 states and have really gotten into the schools. And I'm talking about really working in the schools, creating after school programs, creating fitness programs and all those things, not just for the photo op, like those guys do.
Those guys go in there, read a little book, and sit around with the little children. And then they do the photo op and as soon as the photo is over, they split and you never see them again.
So I can relate to the inner cities. I've been in the inner cities with the after school programs. That's why, because I want to create equal education, equal opportunities for those kids. So I know about the ordinary lives out there. Plus, you know the way I grew up in Austria.
KING: I know. I know. Why won't you debate them then?
SCHWARZENEGGER: I will.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes, but you know the other thing is just little warm-ups. We go for the Super Bowl of the debates. That's what this will be.
KING: One... SCHWARZENEGGER: This is the same, you know, in bodybuilding. When I was competing in bodybuilding...
KING: You didn't...
SCHWARZENEGGER: I didn't go into Mr. Venice Beach contest. I didn't go into the Mr. Seattle contest. I didn't go into those little -- I went for the Mr. Olympia.
KING: But the questions are submitted in advance. That's not a debate, is it?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No, no. There will be discussions. People will know what kind of an idea -- and this is a rule that they came up with.
We decided to do this debate with the California broadcasters, which will be then viewed and aired on all the networks. We'll have a high rating. Everyone will be able to watch it. All the candidates can participate in that. And that's what we're going to do.
In the meantime, remember that every day I debate. Every day when I'm out there and I'm talking and doing interviews there's a debate. I'm doing sessions like, "Ask Arnold."
Yesterday, for instance, I had a wonderful session down there at the Hollenbeck Center. We (UNINTELLIGIBLE) 200 immigrants because it's a special time for me because I just celebrated yesterday my 20- year anniversary of becoming an American citizen.
So this is a big celebration. Maria got me a whole bunch of balloons and all those kinds of things. But I wanted to do this "Ask Arnold" session with immigrants, because I can relate to the immigrants. You know I will be a governor that is an immigrant that can relate to the problems immigrants face.
KING: Last week, you made a speech calling for unity in the party, the party should not be -- not united. Are you calling for the other major Republican candidate to quit the race?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No.
KING: Why don't you publicly ask him to quit?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Because it will be presumptuous for me to do that, Larry. I mean, I think that, you know, McClintock is a smart guy. He has been involved in politics for a long time. And I think that he has to make the decision himself.
Even though he thinks that I'm trying to force him out and I'm having people talk to him, it's not true. I never tried to get him out. It's a decision that he has to make. I just say that, mathematically speaking, it is easier to win. And the chances are higher to win if it's only one candidate, and I'm asking for the party to unify, to come together.
KING: So you're talking to the voters, then?
SCHWARZENEGGER: I'm talking to -- exactly.
KING: OK. Because, by the numbers, as the current polls say, that if he doesn't quit, Bustamante is five points ahead. How do you feel?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, this is -- you know you can't pay that much attention to those polls. In our polls, we are ahead.
KING: You're running polls now?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Absolutely. I mean, in every poll that I've seen, we are ahead in the polls. But, again, you're absolutely right. Mathematically speaking, he would take 13 percent away from me.
So, therefore, the chances, if he's not in there, are better for me to win. It's very simple. But I'm not going to tell him to get out. That's a decision that he has to make.
I look at it in the positive way. I think that things will change in the next three weeks in my favor. And I think it could very well be that even if he stays in that I can win this race.
KING: Do you expect him to stay in? He says he's staying in.
SCHWARZENEGGER: You know, I have no idea. I cannot speak for him. That's a decision that he has to make, like I said. You know he has his own way of thinking, and I have mine.
KING: You keep saying you're a conservative Republican, but in some major Republican issues you are not in accord with the concept of the party, certainly with regard to abortion, the right of women to choose, gay rights, et cetera. Would you agree that you could be safely called a "moderate"?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I have always said that I'm fiscally conservative. That is the key thing. I'm a Republican who is fiscally conservative, that I believe that we should never spend more money than we have.
That's the big problem in Sacramento. That's what has gotten us into the situation that we are in.
KING: So you're moderate in social...
SCHWARZENEGGER: I'm a moderate in some of the issues, yes.
KING: And you're not afraid not to say that?
SCHWARZENEGGER: I'm not afraid. No, no.
KING: You haven't changed any positions since running?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No, absolutely not. I believe very strongly in certain things. You know, if it is choice, I'm against partial abortion, you know, all those things. But I'm for the second amendment, you have the right to bear arms. Even though I'm with moderations like the Brady Bill and...
(CROSSTALK)
KING: ... him having a machine gun?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Absolutely. And also I'm against heavy assault weapons, and also to close the loophole, and all those things. But you know there are certain things also about, you know, domestic partnership rights and all of those things I am for. But when it comes to fiscal policies, I am very conservative, because we cannot continue the way -- what we are doing right now.
KING: Arnold Schwarzenegger has done very well. He's made a lot of money. I'm going to ask him in a minute what's it going to be like to run a state where the purpose is not to make money. We'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHWARZENEGGER: The man that is failing the people more than anyone is Gray Davis. He's failing them terribly. And this is why he needs to be recalled. And this is why I'm going to run for governor of the state of California.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KING: No one knows profit and loss better than you. Here's what the movie costs, here's what it took, here's what we took in. Here's my businesses. You invest in many businesses; you've been very successful.
Running a state ain't the bottom line. The bottom line is not how much we made this week. It's a non-profit organization. Can you run it?
SCHWARZENEGGER: First of all, you should have profits. You should...
KING: The state should have profits?
SCHWARZENEGGER: You should have at the end money left over. You should not spend it all. And then if you have some money left over, you should put it in a rainy day fund.
The biggest problem that we have in this state is that those politicians only know how to sign a check on the back of the check rather than on the front of the check. And, like you said, I have run businesses before. I have met the payroll.
I have dealt with workers' compensation and with health care and with all those kinds of issues. I know what it is like. We can do the same thing in this state like running a business. We just have to really think ahead and have a vision and have leadership.
We cannot go in and see, like the situation in the last few years, when you see the state increased by 21 percent, revenues increased by 28 percent, and our spending increases by 36 percent. What's the point of that?
KING: The problem, though, is that everyone has a logical reason for what they spend. The schools need money and this needs money.
SCHWARZENEGGER: No, no. The schools are tied in -- Prop 98 has taken care of education, it's 40 percent...
KING: How do you know what -- what would you, for example, immediately cut?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, I think, first of all, like I said, the most important thing is to put a spending cap on it because you want...
KING: For all the spending?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Just a spending cap on it, because the first thing you want to do is stop the hemorrhaging, stop the bleeding. Because when you have a patient, when you have a guy that has an accident and he is bleeding, you don't worry about first how to fix the guy, but you worry about the bleeding. Stop the bleeding.
That's what we have to do with the current operating deficit: stop that. Stop it. Put a spending cap on it.
Then we have to open the books. Like I always said, auditing is the most important thing. I tell you, with workers' compensation, we cut down half of what the expenses are, what the costs are there. That will have a tremendous impact on the state workers that we have here. We can get a billion, $1.5 billion out of Medicare, huge frauds, huge amount of expenses...
KING: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SCHWARZENEGGER: We can take money out of that. The tax -- for instance, the tax amnesty, there is billions of dollars coming in through that. We have to go to the federal government. We have to go to the federal government and say, wait a minute, we are paying for each dollar we pay you in federal taxes, we only get back 77 cents.
I will be going there and I will be collecting money for the state. I would demand that. By the time I'm through with this whole thing, I will not be known as the Terminator, I will be known as the collectinator (ph). (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
KING: You talk about workman's comp and the cost of workman's comp. But workman's comp helps people. There's a need for workman's comp, to take care of workers who are in need. Are you telling the workers of California that you're going to cut their compensation?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Larry, the sad story is that we have the highest costs in workers' compensation but not the best benefits. I have just met the other day a man that was in a wheelchair. His name is Frank. He fell off -- through an elevator shaft, and he hurt himself badly, on the job. He's now in a wheelchair. He can never work again. You know what he gets a month? He gets $800 a month. Now, that is not fair when we have the highest costs here. We are talking about three times as much as the average of other states in this country.
Do you know that it costs five times as much to hurt -- to injure -- to break your arm, let's say, on the job than at home? It is ridiculous. We have to have utilization schedule (ph). We have to have certain things -- how many times should you be allowed to go to the doctor? People go three times as many times to the doctor. There's this whole scam going on between the lawyers and the doctors. And as soon as someone gets injured, the lawyer comes in, says, I can represent you...
KING: This is statewide?
SCHWARZENEGGER: This is statewide. He sends you to a doctor. The doctor examines you five, six times. Then he sends you to an X- ray. Then he does his thing. Then he sends you to the chiropractor, then he does his five sessions. Then he sends you to the physical therapist. And this is what goes on because they want to ring up the cost. That's because the lawyer collects one third of what...
KING: Are you saying...
(CROSSTALK)
KING: ... compensation, yes.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Work compensation...
KING: Are you saying a lot of people are doing this?
SCHWARZENEGGER: A lot. This is why we have this big problem here. And you know, we have to start, we have to go in there and say, renegotiate this whole thing, have reform. Worker's compensation reform, and look at the other states, what they are doing and model it after those states.
For instance, we have no clear definition in this state what is permanent disability. The other thing that is very important is that when people get injured on the job -- like, I have a friend of mine who has a body shop. If one of his guys got injured on the job, he cannot do that same job anymore. But he has been retrained, educated, reeducated so he can do -- and to write up estimates, and stuff like that. So what we have to do is we have to help people. No one wants to be out of a job, Larry. People want to work. People want to be productive. That's what we want to do. So it needs an entire worker's compensation reform.
Look what they just have done. It is -- it is total bogus what they've done. It was pre-election, you know, trickery. It's like the budget. If you look at the budget, moving numbers around, make all this kind of special effects. The budget that we have, the current budget, has more special effects than "Terminator III." It is outrageous.
KING: Can the governor change it?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Absolutely. He -- but I mean, he has to create leadership. That is the thing. And he doesn't.
KING: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SCHWARZENEGGER: And he doesn't. He has failed with the leadership. Every one of those guys up there, Cruz Bustamante, they failed with the leadership, and that's why the people of California are fed up. That's why they want to have change.
KING: Back with more of Arnold Schwarzenegger right after this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA SHRIVER, WIFE OF ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER: I wanted to say how proud I am of my husband, for his courage to enter this race, for his commitment to the people of California. I think he is a serious, compassionate, smart, calm, compassionate man. And I think that he will represent Democrats, independents and Republicans, men and women all across this state.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KING: We're back with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Are the Kennedys going to campaign for you?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No.
KING: No?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No.
KING: Eunice announced for you, though.
SCHWARZENEGGER: No, both of them have -- all of the in-laws have been great supporters throughout the years, and they are a great supporter for this -- for this campaign. But you know, I don't need them to campaign. I mean, I...
KING: You wouldn't want them to come in?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No. I mean, I -- I just want their support. That is the important thing for me. But this is between me and the people, you know, that I want the people power. I mean, the other candidates, you know, Davis and all those guys, can bring in all the Democrats, from -- you know, all the leaders...
KING: They're all coming in.
SCHWARZENEGGER: ... everyone -- Clinton -- everyone is coming in, and they're campaigning. And I... KING: Against recall.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHWARZENEGGER: I understand, you know? But where were they in the last five years? Where were they when it was thinking, when they were burying this state, when businesses are leaving, when jobs are leaving and people are fed up in this state, and we have the hugest financial crisis -- $38.5 billion that we have on the budget deficit -- where were all those guys coming in and trying to help Gray Davis at that time? They were looking on at this whole thing. And now they're all coming in.
You know why, Larry? Because this presidential race is going on. There is the election next year. They don't want to lose California. This is a lot of electoral votes, as you know. They don't want to lose it. That's why they want to keep Gray Davis in. It's not about the people, it's about -- just about politics.
KING: Do you want the president to come in for you?
SCHWARZENEGGER: I -- you know something? I've never asked President Bush to come in. I've never called the White House to ask him for any favors. This is a Californian issue. I don't want to have the White House get involved. I don't want to have the federal anyone else get involved. This is between the people and this political system that we have here, that has torn us apart here in California.
I want the people power. The people have to vote on October 7. That's what this is all about, not all those other candidates coming in.
KING: Did you meet with Mr. Ueberroth?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes, I did.
KING: How did that go?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes, as a matter of fact, we had a wonderful meeting yesterday, and we talked about the importance of job creation. We talked about -- we are totally in sync, you know? We talked about...
KING: You are?
SCHWARZENEGGER: Oh, absolutely. The importance of bringing businesses back, the importance of creating a better business environment in California.
KING: You think he will endorse you?
SCHWARZENEGGER: This is up to him. He will make up his mind, but I'm not...
KING: Did he give you any indication? SCHWARZENEGGER: I didn't even ask him. I didn't...
KING: You didn't?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No, I absolutely...
KING: You didn't say, support me?
SCHWARZENEGGER: No. And what I said to him was, I said, Pete, I respect you very much. You're a great businessman. You are a terrific, you know, human being. You've done so much for our country. I said, you know, I want to hear your ideas also. Let's see how we can work together in the future.
And so -- but I said, I know you're going through a process right now, where you talk to all the various different candidates. And when you're finished with that, then you should make up your own mind which way -- which way you want to go. But I respect you and I respect your opinion.
And so it's up to him. He will make up his mind in the next few days. |
