Schwarzenegger endorses McCain
The governor's decision to back the Arizona senator could help him gain GOP acceptance of his environmental policies.
With his endorsement of John McCain for the presidency this morning, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger seized an opportunity to push forward his own policy agenda within the GOP after years of resistance from Washington Republicans.
Schwarzenegger praised the Arizona senator as a "great American hero" who - like himself - is not afraid to buck the Republican establishment. McCain, in turn, promised to crusade for Schwarzenegger's signature style of environmentalism. It incorporates the emissions curbs that Republicans have long been reluctant to embrace, with investment in green technology and - true to Schwarzenegger's jet-setting lifestyle -- limited sacrifice in quality of life.
Schwarzenegger made the much-anticipated announcement on the floor of a Los Angeles factory that produces solar roofing systems. "This is the future," Schwarzenegger said.
McCain "has a great vision to protect the environment and also protect the economy," Schwarzenegger said. "He has shown the action over and over again."
The coveted endorsement from California's popular governor is expected to help McCain cement his status as the Republican frontrunner. And it also gives Schwarzenegger yet another national platform for his own ideas - and the promise for more acceptance of those ideas within his own party, should McCain ultimately win the nomination.
Schwarzenegger's work on global warming, while popular with voters, has long been mocked by much of the GOP establishment. Conservatives routinely criticize the landmark law Schwarzenegger signed to curb greenhouse gas emissions as anti-competitive and unnecessary. Schwarzenegger's administration, meanwhile, is constantly wrangling with the White House over other state environmental policies.
But McCain has embraced the governor's work on the environment - choosing to stand with Schwarzenegger even as it may cost him support among the conservatives in California and elsewhere he needs to win the Republican nomination.
"I am very honored to know this governor has taken the lead in this great state to protect the environment," McCain said. "He knows it is not only important to California but to the world."
Schwarzenegger's endorsement came less than two weeks after he announced he was planning to remain neutral in the race. But the governor said he decided to get involved after another candidate he favored, former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, dropped out Wednesday and endorsed McCain.
