US Republican
presidential candidate and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) (R) is
embraced by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger after
Schwarzenegger endorsed McCain for President during a campaign
appearance in Los Angeles January 31, 2008.?
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, while touring a solar
energy technology company in Los Angeles on Thursday, announced his
endorsement for John McCain as the Republican presidential
candidate.
Schwarzenegger, who used the event to tout the use of
alternative energy, talked about moving into the future with
environment-saving technologies, and hailed McCain's support of
that effort.
"Talking about a great future, this is the very reason why I am
endorsing Senator McCain to be the next president of the United
States," he said, standing alongside McCain and former New York
City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Schwarzenegger praised the Arizona Senator for his environmental
positions and national security credentials, calling him "a great
American hero and extraordinary leader."
The former Hollywood action star is one of the Republican
Party's most popular figures, and his endorsement could be a big
boost for McCain headed into California's first-ever early primary
on Tuesday. California has 55 electoral votes, more than any other
state.
McCain was earlier endorsed by Giuliani Wednesday, a day after
McCain's victory in the Florida primary made him the Republican
front-runner and Giuliani's third-place finish knocked him out of
the race.
Both Schwarzenegger and Giuliani are moderates whose positions
on such issues as abortion and gun control are anathema to
conservatives, a body of Republican voters that McCain seeks to win
over.
However, the two high-profile figures' endorsements could help
McCain with moderate Republicans and independents, observers
said.
The Arizona senator, who ran unsuccessfully for the nomination
in 2000, is a former US Navy pilot, who was shot down over Vietnam
in 1967 and spent five years as prisoner of war.
Born August 29, 1936, in Panama's Canal Zone to a
submarine-commanding Navy admiral, McCain comes from a family with
a deep military history. His grandfather was also a Navy admiral,
who commanded the Pacific aircraft carrier fleet during World War
II.
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(Xinhua News Agency February 1, 2008)
