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Arnold Schwarzenegger to President Trump: "Why don't we switch jobs?"

Arnold Schwarzenegger on 'Celebrity Apprentice' (credit: NBC)
Arnold Schwarzenegger on ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ (credit: NBC)

It’s long been known that Arnold Schwarzenegger would dearly love to serve in the Oval Office – but until now, he’s never directly challenged a serving US President to let him take over.

But this is just what Schwarzenegger has done to President Donald Trump, continuing a war of words between the two men on Twitter. (We know, it’s hard to keep track of how many people Trump gets into Twitter spats with.)

Schwarzenegger took over from Trump as the frontman of reality TV series ‘The Apprentice,’ and Trump has repeatedly criticised his successor for apparently getting lower ratings – even going so far as to make a joke about this at the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday.

Here’s how Schwarzenegger replied:

The 69-year old ex-bodybuilder, actor and former Governor of California said, “hey Donald, I’ve got a great idea. Why don’t we switch jobs? You take over TV, because you’re such an expert in ratings, and I take over your job, and then people can finally sleep comfortably again, hmm?”

A spokesperson for Schwarzenegger elaborated on this to ABC News:

The 80s/90s action superstar’s presidential aspirations have long been well known. His one-time rival Sylvester Stallone made jokes about it in ‘Demolition Man’ and ‘The Expendables,’ and ‘The Simpsons Movie’ featured him in the White House – and let’s not forget, ‘The Simpsons’ also predicted President Trump back in 2000.

Schwarzenegger served two terms as the Governor of California from 2003 to 2011, a role previously taken by Ronald Reagan. However, as an Austrian immigrant (he became an official US citizen in 1983), Schwarzenegger remains barred from running for President, as convention dictates the candidate must be born an American. (Mind you, there was also something about releasing tax returns…)

President Donald Trump speaks during the National Prayer Breakfast, Feb. 2, 2017, in Washington. (Photo: Evan Vucci/AP)
President Donald Trump speaks during the National Prayer Breakfast, Feb. 2, 2017, in Washington. (Photo: Evan Vucci/AP)

Despite having been a registered Republican throughout the entirety of his time in the US, Schwarzenegger refused to endorse Trump prior to the November 2016 election.

All this having been said, it should be noted that President Trump remains an executive producer on ‘The Apprentice,’ so it’s hardly outside the realms of possibility that this ‘war of words’ could be nothing more than a ploy to whip up more publicity for the TV series.

Of course, you’d think – or hope – that as President of the United States of America, Mr Trump would have rather more significant matters on his mind.

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