California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Sunday that he backs a modification of the U.S. Constitution that would allow him to run for president one day.
Asked on NBC's "Meet the Press" about an amendment introduced by Sen. Orrin Hatch that would allow any immigrant who has been a citizen for 20 years to serve as president, the Austrian-born Republican at first joked, "Man, I should look at that because it sounds really good."
But when asked if he agreed in principle with the Hatch proposal, Schwarzenegger responded, "Oh, absolutely.
"I think that, you know, times have changed," he explained. "I think this is now a much more global economy. I think that there's so many people here in this country that are now from overseas, that are immigrants, that are doing such a terrific job with the work, bringing businesses here and all this, that there's no reason why [they couldn't be president].
Schwarzenegger, who became a citizen in 1983, cited contributions made by other naturalized citizens like Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright, saying, "There's many, many, many people here that have worked within the government and have done an extraordinary job and not have been born in America."
Editor's note:
Arnold Schwarzenegger `"Terminates" Politics, Get the Story – Click Here Now
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