Arnold tells ABC reporter she's "looking for a mistake"

[Fash]

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/scott-whit ... e-coverage

By Scott Whitlock | October 24, 2007 - 12:42 ET

Reporter Claire Shipman did her level best to get California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to say the efforts to combat the state's wild fires were going poorly. Shipman interviewed the governor on Wednesday's "Good Morning America" and wondered about "the comparison to Katrina that everybody's making in the back of their mind..." At one point, Governor Schwarzenegger cut off Shipman's pleas for negative assessments of the effort by grabbing her arm. He bluntly scolded, "Trust me when I tell you, you're looking for a mistake and you won't find it because it's all good news, as much as you maybe hate it, but it's good news."

Video (1:21): Real (2.21 MB) and Windows (2.51 MB), or MP3 audio (632 kB).

Earlier, the ABC correspondent attempted to deflate Schwarzenegger's sunny optimism by mentioning unnamed officials in Orange County who asserted the state doesn't have enough resources, including firefighting aircraft. The former actor simply wouldn't go along with this premise of victimization. He firmly retorted, "Anyone that is complaining about the planes, just wants to complain because it's a bunch of nonsense." Schwarzenegger then proceeded to point out that the state has 90 planes and only wind has hampered their use.

[Abelard]

I fucking love Arnold.

I wish he was PM of Canada!

[Lynks]

I just love how the article claims he grabbed her arm and the reporter says "He even applied a heavy weight grip". All he did was grab her hand for crying out loud!

[Midnyte_Ragebringer]

I'm loving this guy more and more.

[Tyek]

Yeah that made my day. The part she also did not mention, is that government officials are to blame. Los Angeles County has it's own equipment and Orange and San Diego counties (the cities actually) voted against it, saying that it was too expensive to own and maintain. A local radio show had a government official from Orange County and he was getting crucified on the air.

The media is trying to compare this with Katrina, they even started saying it could be Al Queda and when Arnold told her she was looking for something not there, you could see her go immediately on the defensive.