The Presinator?

Next up, Paris Hilton.

They probably won't change the Constitution by 2012, but they might by 2016. When Arnold will be 69.

Or ironically (and more likely) anti-immigrant.

Congress. The states. The people. As others have pointed out, amending the Constitution is a pretty big deal.

Blatantly amending the Constitution to suit the political ambitions of one person?

I think there's sufficient grounds to "sleep on it" for a decade or so.

It seems like they're going a little too far to pay off a gag in "Demolition Man."

There's no way Sarah Palin will be president or even nominated. She's a fucking joke to everyone except those who have spent their entire lives in one state. The world is going in the opposite direction, even america. Small towns are dead. If I'm wrong, well, any optimism left in me will be exhausted forever.

I could not picture any scenario in which this happens. I could be wrong. If the last few months has proven anything, it is that the Republicans seem hellbent on learning all the wrong lessons from the 2008 election, but I don't think Schwarzenegger could get the nomination even if he did somehow get the constitution amended, which isn't something that happens everyday.

Arnold's been saying this for years. "I always aim for the top" I think the first time he mentioned that he was up for it was 2004 or 2005

If I'm not mistaken, don't Amendments have to start as Federal legislation? No way in hell this ever gets out of committee. It's a Political Oh Don Piano.

The Republican party should be all over this. Arnold running for President is the best thing that could happen for them short of Obama getting caught having sex with a white 17 year old.

It was only a matter of time before this came up. The worst part is people would elect Arnold if the Republicans were able to change the Constitution to allow it...

I wouldn't be against the amendment, personally. I think it's an arbitrary rule that does nothing to improve the quality of candidates. And as we've just found out, Arnold is far from the worst candidate the Republicans could dredge up.

It'll never happen. The far right-wing of the party would never allow it. "He's a furriner!"

The far-right wing seems to be losing a lot of its traction, though. With the demonstration that appealing to the basest of the base isn't working, I suspect that the extreme voices may be muted for a while.

Agreed.

Frankly, I'm having a hard time seeing why this shouldn't happen. It's an antiquated idea. We should allow the best of the best in citizens of the US to be able to run for the highest office, not limit our options to the best of one group of citizens.

It shouldn't happen just to allow Schwarzenegger to run for President post-haste, which would undeniably be the reason if it were actually proposed within the next four years. Unless he was grandfathered out.

When and if it ever happens, it's going to happen so that a particular person can run. It's never going to be overturned on general principle. Rules are changed because a need is seen to change them, not because they're old and outdated. If it's changed for Arnold, so be it.

This is the last remaining barrier preventing me from becoming president of the United States, so I'm all for it.

I was born in Canada, but it was on an American Air Force base, so I'm good already.

Arnold's been saying this for years. How is this news now?

The GOP would not support him because he is Liberal on Social issues.

The other day I picked up the latest American Spectator, a rag that claims to be the intellectual standard bearer for the Right. They had a "forum" where various right wingers opined on the future of the GOP. Almost every one of them touted Sarah Palin as the future of the party. Pathetic.

Sarah Palin is still relevant?


Let her go the way of K-Fed.

Regardless, I always thought this was a stupid law.

Reason enough to let the law stand as is.

This is true. One of the main reasons Giuliani couldn't gain traction for his presidential bid was the fact that he couldn't make an effective case to the powerful socially conservative wing of the party. Even McCain couldn't drum up that much excitement with the base until he picked someone with solid conservative bona fides as his running mate. Someone like Arnold would have little chance to win over the social conservatives.

I think the two intellectual standard bearers for the Right are the National Review and the Weekly Standard (more of a neoconservative agenda). The American Spectator, I think, has been viewed as a bit of a joke for the better part of a decade. While Palin has a handful of advocates among conservative intellectuals (many of whom rightly point out her natural ability to connect with and inspire conservative voters), most of the conservative intellectuals I've been reading are looking towards established or emerging Republicans with ideas, intelligence and some record of accomplishment to go with their strong conservative ideals. People like Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich from the older generation and Bobby Jindal and Eric Cantor from the younger generation. Besides, barring a monumentally disastrous first 3 years for the Obama Administration, the 2012 Republican nominee will be a sacrificial lamb anyway.

California is going broke and one of Schwarzenegger's only stopgaps was to cut the already impoverished public school system, so I couldn't support a Presinator campaign. That said, people are starstruck and I have no doubt that if Schwarzenegger were legally allowed to serve as President that he would easily win, right wing loonies or no. And by a landslide at that.

Yes, I think some of you are underestimating the power of celebrity. If they thought he'd win, the party would give him the nomination in a heartbeat. And they'd be stupid to think he wouldn't win. He didn't take California by being a canny and well-informed politician. He did it by quoting The Terminator. And he'd take the country exactly the same way.

Outdated, maybe, but not stupid. What would be the point of declaring yourself a free country who shook off the shackles of Britain if King George gets on the ballot and wins?