Body politic: direct from the Sacramento statehouse's newest official chamber—a cigar tent—the Golden State's Iron-willed governor gives M & F an exclusive interview

Muscle & Fitness, August, 2005 by Jeff O'Connell

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the most famous person in the world. (No? Then who?) After conquering bodybuilding by winning the Mr. Olympia contest seven times, and then taking health and fitness squarely into the mainstream, he became Hollywood's most bankable star. Now he serves as the governor of a state that, were it sovereign, would rank as the world's fifth largest economy, cutting a political figure of such gravitas that President Bush leaned on him in the eleventh hour of a heated contest to win reelection last November. That kind of pull has led to rumblings about Arnold running for the presidency of the United States himself, even though doing so would require amending the U.S. constitution.

Whether it happens, only time will tell. But anyone who doubts that Arnold has the charisma, the drive and the smarts to attempt it, if he chooses to, should go back and reread this paragraph.

From the moment Arnold announced his candidacy for governor on The Tonight Show, it has been politics as unusual in California (complete with a new pronunciation for the Golden State). The governor rode into office on an enormous wave of popularity and he hasn't deviated from his stated course even as the seas have gotten rougher--which was inevitable, given the mess he inherited and the tough calls he has to make every day. The one thing that has been proven is that he has the intellectual chops and mental dexterity required of a chief executive. Time spent with the Gov on the job reveals an independent thinker with a sharp grasp of the myriad issues confronting him each day, a natural politician with an innovative penchant for formulating strategy--a word he uses often.

Last Feb. 15, Peter McGough, editor in chief of FLEX, was granted the privilege of spending a day with Gov. Schwarzenegger. McGough first encountered Arnold, then a raw 22-year-old, at a bodybuilding seminar in England in 1969, and has had a bird's-eye view of a career that has confounded everyone's expectations time and again. McGough flew with Arnold from Santa Monica to Sacramento aboard his 12-seater private jet before being whisked along with him to the Capitol Building, then up to the governor's office. He attended all of the governor's meetings that day; accompanied him to a reception for a collection of stars from the movie Be Cool, followed by a special premiere of the film; and then hung out while Arnold exercised his mind with a late-night game of chess, surrounded by his inner circle of advisors and buddies.

Remarkably, Arnold squeezed a 30-minute interview with M & F into this whirlwind day. At 5:45 p.m., with assistants glancing nervously at their watches and Blackberries, the governor led McGough outside in pouring rain to the tent he has built in the Capitol's inner courtyard, specifically for his cigar smoking. After lighting one up, he came out smoking in the interview, too.

M & F: You spend the week here in Sacramento; your family lives in Los Angeles. Why have you chosen to do this job, with all its stresses, when you could have kicked back for life and watched your young family grow?

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER: Every so often in life, a door of opportunity opens up, and you have the choice to go through it or stay where you are. I took the opportunity [of running for governor] because our state was in a disastrous situation. I felt there wasn't a career politician who could bring the parties together and turn this state around. The common thinking was that California was ungovernable, and that we had a financial crisis that some felt couldn't be managed. When someone says something can't be done, I see that as a challenge--where there's a will, there's a way. So I jumped right in there because I wanted to give something back to the state.

In regards to taking an easy life: I look at "work" differently from most people. When I was on a movie set at three in the morning jumping over car hoods, then breaking for a workout before starting again at six, I didn't call that work. I call that having a good time. I'll tell you what work is. In the late '60s I went to stay with Reg Park [1951, '58 and '65 Mr. Universe, who was Arnold's early bodybuilding inspiration] in South Africa. He took me to a gold mine. The miners worked in 100-degree temperatures, 1,000 feet below the ground, in a space they couldn't really stand up in. Dust was everywhere, and they'd work 12 hours straight for a dollar a day. They lived in hostels and sent their money home to their families. When people tell me their work is tough, I tell them that story.

M & F: Is there a typical day in your life as governor?

ARNOLD: There's a structure to most working days, but the issues I am involved in each day vary enormously. When I'm in Sacramento, my day starts at seven with an hour on the Lifecycle, which I have in my hotel room. That gives me a chance to study my papers, briefings and prepare my speeches. Then I have breakfast and I'm in the office by nine. That's when all the meetings start. Often my lunch break is a working one, and in the evenings I'm usually at some sort of meeting, rally or fund-raiser. Tonight we have a special premiere of Be Cool. [Arnold arranged this special premiere in Sacramento as a means to promote the California film industry and encourage moviemakers to work in the state. He promises it will be the first of a series.]