Arnie faces political big guns
2003-08-22 11:02
Los Angeles - A top California politician has opened fire on political hopeful Arnold Schwarzenegger about rampant gun violence shown in his hit movies including Terminator.
The swinging attack by veteran Democratic senator Dianne Feinstein on the Republican action hero who is running for governor of California came a day after Schwarzenegger unveiled his policy platform.
"Violence begets violence," said Feinstein as she appeared with embattled California Democratic governor Gray Davis in Los Angeles to lobby for a permanent ban on military-style assault weapons.
"And... you become a role model for someone of lesser maturity out on the street to try to imitate what you do in a movie.
"So, I don't consider those kinds of things terribly healthy for a society," she said.
The gun-slinging star of action movies such as the Terminator series, Total Recall, Conan the Barbarian and True Lies is recasting himself as a governor who will tackle the crippled economy instead of bad guys.
Caught Democrats off-guard
He is the leading candidate among 135 who are contesting the October 7 recall election aimed at toppling Davis amid criticism of his mismanagement of the world's fifth-largest economy.
But Feinstein is the first of the Democratic big guns to take aim at the actor-turned-politician since he announced his surprise candidacy two weeks ago, catching the Democratic party off guard .
She said: "I would call on Mr Schwarzenegger to renounce these weapons, absolutely.
"These weapons bring no good to the United States of America," she said, challenging the moderate Republican to publicly oppose assault weapons.
"They don't belong on our streets. I hope he will say that again, again and again - and forcefully."
Arnie emerges as favourite
Schwarzenegger has said it is up to the United States institution that approves films for particular audiences to decide whether to put an "R" rating on his movies, a rating that would bar youngsters under 17 from seeing them.
Feinstein is supporting Davis by opposing the recall vote in which Californians will be asked, first, whether they want to sack Davis and then who should replace him if he is stripped of power.
A poll showed on Thursday that 58% of Californians said they want to oust him.
Schwarzenegger emerged as the favourite candidate to replace him, with a 23% vote against 18% for Democratic lieutenant-governor Cruz Bustamante.
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