Critics slam Schwarzenegger deal with fitness mags

[THE BOUNCER]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/07/....ap/index.html

[crossconnect]

i would not think twice about how he makes legit money off cunsulting fee's.all good political personalities do this if given a chance.that is a perk of being a politition.he has always been on the payroll of one mag or another.he has beliefs that date back farther than his political position does.they are just jelious of him and will do what ever it takes to try to make him look bad.it is not a conflict of interest by any stretch of the immagination!they need to focus on real issues that face thier communities and stop the pissing contests!just my 2 cents.

[Scrumhalf]

Well crossconnect, I would have to disagree here. As an elected official who has the power to make policy decisions, he cannot be seen as potentially beholden to any outside party. This is just a matter of principle, whether or not he actually makes decisions that could be influenced by his external contract.

If we don't draw the line very clearly on this, anything goes. For example, what would prevent Cheney to continue to be a "consultant" to Halliburton or some other oil company when he is in a position to influence their access to government contracts?

This is just wrong and much as I admire Arnold, this was really poor judgment on his part.