|
The California Comeback Express I was assigned to follow Arnold Schwarzenegger on his whirlwind, across the state campaign the week before election night. Four long, cramped days on a bus from San Diego to Sacramento, stopping along the way to rallies in Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto and Pleasanton. After that, we hopped on a jet and flew from Sacramento to San Jose, Huntington Beach, San Bernardino and Burbank. Over a dozen rallies hearing the same old speech over and over again. |
|||||||||||
![]() |
|||||||||||
|
Arnold's bus was named The Running Man, the staff bus, Total Recall and the press buses, Predator 1 to 4. |
|||||||||||
|
Over 200 members of the media followed Arnold. There were crews from Japan, Austria, Germany and France. Lots of interest in the Terminator. |
|||||||||||
![]() |
|||||||||||
|
Arnold's past comments and actions caught up to him on the first day of the tour when a LA Times story revealed that a number of women from his past came forward accusing him of sexual misconduct. As Arnold was leaving a rally in LA, this lone protestor held up a handwritten sign. To my surprise, we ran this photo on page 1. Sign says " Reach out and cop a feel Arnold". I wonder what was written on the other side? |
|||||||||||
![]() |
|||||||||||
|
It amazed me that Arnold survived the sexual misconduct accusations - some of which he acknowledged, some he denied, and some he said "he doesn't remember". And yet at each rally the supporters were predominately star-struck women of all ages. Women who voted for him. |
|||||||||||
![]() |
|||||||||||
|
On damage control, the Schwarzenegger team hastily had thousands of posters printed up : "Remarkable Women for Arnold" and littered the stage with them at each rally. They also made sure there were dozens of women with him as a backdrop at each of the rallies. On the 2nd day of the bus tour, Maria Shriver joined Arnold on stage to tell us what a wonderful man he is and each time, kissed her husband right on cue. It was all so scripted and phony. |
|||||||||||