Lexington
At a blow, Arnold Schwarzenegger has transformed the California political scene.
“The Terminator also has a compelling story to tell: one that cannot help melting the hearts of people obsessed with celebrity and upward mobility. He is an Austrian immigrant who came to America with little command of English. Yet he lived the American dream, earning an MBA, marrying a Kennedy, making millions in films and, despite a dodgy past as a body-builder, becoming a pillar of Los Angeles society.
When Ronald Reagan ran for the governorship of California in 1966 (sounding many of the same populist notes that the Terminator is now sounding) the state’s political establishment treated him as a joke. The star of “Bedtime for Bonzo” running for the most important governorship in the country! Mr Reagan trashed his opponent, Pat Brown, by a million votes.”