[Charean]

Originally posted by antryg: Charean- I think you just like to see Arnold "the Barbarian" all oiled up and showing off those muscles. If your that into California politics while living in Texas then I'm going to have to watch out for both you and Timber Loftis.

Actually, we have had quite a few actors in political office and none of them embarrassed us as a nation, so I am not against it on those grounds.

He is a Republican (which doesn't thrill me a whole lot) but I like his ideas on taking care of the kids. After all, if you take care of the next generation, they will take care of you. I haven't really looked into his positions on issues, but I am sure if he runs, they will be public soon enough.

A quote from milhouse on Movie.com:

You know, ever since Ronald Reagan won the presidency in 1980...a trend has occurred. Celebrities run for political office, and the public votes for them.

• Sonny Bono, the recently deceased U.S. Senator who entertained us all as half of the Sonny and Cher duo. He appeared not only as a musician, but acted in such films as: First Kid, Airplane II, and Hairspray. He, of course, had many tv appearances on his own show, The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour, The Love Boat, Charlie's Angels, Fantasy Island, etc. He then was elected Mayor of Palm Springs California, then to the United States Congress, and finally to the Senate.
• Senator Fred Thompson from Tennessee is in his second term and received the most votes of any candidate for any office in the history of his state in 1996. He has appeared in a slew of films, such as: Die Hard II, No Way Out, In The Line Of Fire, The Hunt For Red October, Cape Fear (Robert De Niro version), Flight Of The Intruder, and many others...(although before he ever acted, he was an Assistant U.S. Attorney, and served on Minority Counsel to the Senate Watergate Comittee)
• Governor Jesse "The Body" Ventura, who's story we all know...former pro-wrestler, former bodyguard for the Rolling Stones, short list of film appearances such as: Predator, The Running Man, Batman & Robin, and of course The Jesse Ventura Story (the made-for-tv movie about his life wasn't actually all that bad, except for the acting, of course).
• Fred 'Gopher' Grandy, former U.S. Representative from Iowa, who made an ever-lasting impression on all of us as tv's loveable yeoman purser on The Love Boat series. He also appeared on film in Death Race 2000. He left office to run for Iowa Governor, losing by a narrow margin to the incumbent Terry Branstad. Fred Grandy now serves as president of Goodwill Industries.

The interesting thing is that all of these people became well respected for their political accomplishments, even if their acting careers were less than shining.

I find that this is not necessarily a bad thing. To continue:

We elect politicians to office, and all these horrible secrets come pouring out of their past. But actors already have all those past mistakes out in public view. Their lives are on the internet, in the papers and magazines, on A&E's Biography, and in the National Enquirer (sort of). As a hollywood celebrity, people like Warren Beatty have a lot of free time on their hands...which they use to criticize the government and take up political causes. Politicians don't have time for political causes, because their far too busy with other government issues as getting kick-backs, raising their salaries, and getting re-elected.

As celebrities, these people have already amassed fortunes which they can then use to campaign...without having to turn to corporations and private interest groups who donate campaign funds with the expectation of political favors after the candidate is elected. "No Bribes, Because I'm Already Rich", what a great campaign slogan.

Every four years, Elvis Presley gets dozens, if not hundreds of write in votes during the presidential elections. Why? Well, he's more trust-worthy than your average Senator or Representative...and he's been DEAD for twenty-two years. If Jimmy Stewart were alive, he'd get my vote. Talk about a trust-worthy candidate. That is a man with character, a president you could look up to, a real leader. (Maybe I'll stop voting for Elvis next year and write in Jimmy Stewart).

I just think it is something to really consider.