Actor and former Republican California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger criticized former President Donald Trump in a strongly-worded post on X, formerly Twitter, explaining why he is voting for Vice President Kamala Harris and rejecting "four more years of bulls**t" under Trump.
Schwarzenegger acknowledged he doesn't often endorse people publicly but understands "that people want to hear from me because I am not just a celebrity, I am a former Republican Governor."
While he is currently unhappy with both major political parties, he stressed his commitment to policymaking, a governmental necessity he feels has taken a backseat to partisan infighting.
He noted:
"My time as Governor taught me to love policy and ignore politics. I’m proud of the work I did to help clean up our air, create jobs, balance the budget, make the biggest infrastructure investment in state history, and take power from the politicians and give it back to the people when it comes to our redistricting process and our primaries in California."
"That’s policy. It requires working with the other side, not insulting them to win your next election, and I know it isn’t sexy to most people, but I love it when I can help make people’s lives better with policies, like I still do through my institute at USC, where we fight for clean air and stripping the power from the politicians who rig the system against the people."
"Let me be honest with you: I don’t like either party right now. My Republicans have forgotten the beauty of the free market, driven up deficits, and rejected election results. Democrats aren’t any better at dealing with deficits, and I worry about their local policies hurting our cities with increased crime."
"It is probably not a surprise that I hate politics more than ever, which, if you are a normal person who isn’t addicted to this crap, you probably understand."
The actor—best known for his starring role in the Terminator franchise—called out Trump, pointing out that "rejecting the results of an election is as un-American as it gets" and that "To someone like me who talks to people all over the world and still knows America is the shining city on a hill, calling America a trash can for the world is so unpatriotic, it makes me furious."
He then announced his endorsement for Harris and her running mate Tim Walz, explaining:
"And I will always be an American before I am a Republican. That’s why, this week, I am voting for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. I’m sharing it with all of you because I think there are a lot of you who feel like I do. You don’t recognize our country. And you are right to be furious."
"For decades, we’ve talked about the national debt. For decades, we’ve talked about comprehensive immigration reform that secures the border while fixing our broken immigration system. And Washington does nothing. The problems just keep rolling, and we all keep getting angrier, because the only people that benefit from problems aren’t you, the people."
"The only people that benefit from this crap are the politicians who prefer having talking points to win elections to the public service that will make Americans’ lives better. It is a just game to them. But it is life for my fellow Americans. We should be pissed!"
Schwarzenegger went on to note just why Trump is unfit for office, drawing attention to Trump's authoritarian tendencies and willingness to foster hate and division:
"But a candidate who won’t respect your vote unless it is for him, a candidate who will send his followers to storm the Capitol while he watches with a Diet Coke, a candidate who has shown no ability to work to pass any policy besides a tax cut that helped his donors and other rich people like me but helped no one else else, a candidate who thinks Americans who disagree with him are the bigger enemies than China, Russia, or North Korea - that won’t solve our problems."
"It will just be four more years of bullshit with no results that makes us angrier and angrier, more divided, and more hateful. We need to close the door on this chapter of American history, and I know that former President Trump won’t do that."
"He will divide, he will insult, he will find new ways to be more un-American than he already has been, and we, the people, will get nothing but more anger."
He concluded:
"That’s enough reason for me to share my vote with all of you. I want to move forward as a country, and even though I have plenty of disagreements with their platform, I think the only way to do that is with Harris and Walz."
"Vote this week. Turn the page and put this junk behind us. And even if you disagree with me, vote, because that’s what we do as Americans. http://vote.org."
You can see his post below.
Many welcomed his endorsement.
Schwarzengger's comments came after Trump appeared at New York City's Madison Square Garden for a rally that's been largely compared to a Nazi rally Adolf Hitler's followers held in 1939.
Trump said that if elected he would "launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out" and pledged to "get critical race theory and transgender insanity the hell out of our school." In a classic case of projection, he called Harris a "train wreck who has destroyed everything in her path."
Last week, retired Marine General John Kelly, who previously served as Trump’s White House chief of staff, said Trump “certainly prefers the dictator approach to government.” It was also Kelly who confirmed to The Atlantic that Trump privately commended Hitler's generals for their loyalty, stating he wanted "the kind of generals that Hitler had."
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