Arnold Schwarzenegger and Donald Trump are not on good terms right now. (Both photos: Getty)
Donald Trump found a new target on Twitter on January 6, when he decided to start tweeting about the low ratings for the new season of Celebrity Apprentice. Arnold Schwarzenegger, an active Twitter user himself, did not take the Trump review lying down.
Instead, he hit back with his own series of messages, telling the president-elect that he has more important work to do than complain to a television star.
Here’s a look at the feud between the reality TV stars and their relationship in the past.
1. Trump Tweeted That Schwarzenegger Got ‘Swamped’ in the Ratings Compared to Himself, a ‘Ratings Machine’
Arnold Schwarzenegger on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. (Getty)
The Twitter battle between Trump and Schwarzenegger started on January 6, four days after the first episode of Schwarzenegger’s Celebrity Apprentice aired.
“Wow, the ratings are in and Arnold Schwarzenegger got “swamped” (or destroyed) by comparison to the ratings machine, DJT. So much for being a movie star-and that was season 1 compared to season 14. Now compare him to my season 1. But who cares, he supported Kasich & Hillary,” Trump wrote, referring to himself in the first person.
Wow, the ratings are in and Arnold Schwarzenegger got “swamped” (or destroyed) by comparison to the ratings machine, DJT. So much for….
being a movie star-and that was season 1 compared to season 14. Now compare him to my season 1. But who cares, he supported Kasich & Hillary
Schwarzenegger, who has more political experience than Trump as a two-term governor of California, quickly responded to this by telling Trump that he has more important things to care about.
“I wish you the best of luck and I hope you’ll work for ALL of the American people as aggressively as you worked for your ratings,” Schwarzenegger fired back.
I wish you the best of luck and I hope you’ll work for ALL of the American people as aggressively as you worked for your ratings.
Schwarzenegger then re-posted a video he shared on November 9, the day after election day. In it, he quotes Abraham Lincoln.
Please study this quote from Lincoln’s inaugural, @realDonaldTrump. It inspired me every day I was Governor, and I hope it inspires you.
Trump, as usual, didn’t respond to Schwarzenegger’s posts. Instead, he moved onto another target, complaining about NBC News’ report that U.S. intelligence has delivered its report on the Russian hacks before the election to President Barack Obama.
2. Trump Is Correct About Schwarzenegger’s Ratings Being Terrible for the First Night
(Getty)
In this case, Trump is correct that Schwarzenegger’s first night as Apprentice host didn’t light up the ratings. As TheWrap notes, the first episode drew 4.9 million viewers and a 1.3 rating in the 18-49 demographic.
The 14th and last season to feature Trump, which started in January 2015, had 6.8 million viewers and a 2.4 18-49 rating. That season averaged 7.6 million viewers and a 2.4 rating, according to TheWrap.
Trump’s best season was his first. During the 2003-2004 TV season, The Apprentice averaged a remarkable 20.7 million viewers and a 10.1 18-49 rating. In today’s TV landscape, those numbers are nearly impossible to reach, as the audience is so fractured thanks to cable and streaming.
Trump’s worst season was the 2010-2011 fall cycle, which didn’t feature celebrities. That season averaged 4.6 million viewers and a 1.7 18-49 rating.
3. Schwarzenegger Endorsed John Kasich & Refused to Vote for Trump in November
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ohio Governor John Kasich in March 2016. (Getty)
During the presidential campaign, Schwarzenegger – who can’t run for President himself – endorsed Ohio Governor John Kasich. WCPO reported that Schwarzenegger told Kasich, “You are the Terminator.”
In October 2016, Schwarzenegger announced on Twitter that he couldn’t support Trump and that it would be the first time since he became an American citizen in 1983 that he wouldn’t vote for the GOP candidate.
“As proud as I am to label myself a Republican, there is one label that I hold above all else – American,” the Terminator star wrote. “So I want to take a moment to remind my fellow Republicans that it is not only acceptable to choose your country over your party – it is your duty.”
As proud as I am to label myself a Republican, there is one label that I hold above all else – American. My full statement:
4. Schwarzenegger Said Trump Helped Him Get the ‘Apprentice’ Job & Doesn’t Have a Problem With Trump’s Executive Producer Credit
Although Trump isn’t directly involved with Celebrity Apprentice any longer, he still has an executive producer credit. In a December 2016 Today Show interview, Schwarzenegger said he sees nothing wrong with that.
“I think it’s perfectly fine that he has executive producer credit because he created the show with Mark Burnett together, so why should his credit go?” Schwarzenegger said. “He made it very clear that he has no interest in being involved. It is now my show, I’m the host, I’m the new boss and I’m going to run this show.”
The actor said Trump played a big part in getting him the job in the first place. ““He was part of the negotiations, so I get millions of dollars for hosting the show, but NBC doesn’t have to pay for it — Trump makes Mexico pay for it,” Schwarzenegger joked in the interview.
Schwarzenegger also told Today that Americans should support Trump because he will be the next president. “Now he’s elected, and now it is very important that we all support the president, and that we all come together and we stop whining and it becomes one nation,” he told Today‘s Matt Lauer.
5. Trump & Schwarzenegger Have Both Faced Claims of Sexual Misconduct With Women
Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2003. (Getty)
When Schwarzenegger announced that he would not vote for Trump, Schwarzenegger did not mention Trump’s lewd comments about women and the long list of women who accused him of sexual misconduct. That’s probably because Schwarzenegger has faced similar allegations in the past.
In 2003, when Schwarzenegger was running for his first term as California Governor, six women told the Los Angeles Times that Schwarzenegger acted inappropriately with them. One of the incidents described happened in the 1970s, two in the 1980s, two in the 1990s and one in the 2000s.
Unlike Trump, who denied all claims and threatened to file lawsuits against his accusers, Schwarzenegger did apologize for behaving badly, even as he called the original report “trash politics.”
“So I want to say to you, yes, I have behaved badly sometimes,” Schwarzenegger said at a San Diego rally, The LA Times reported. “Yes, it is true that I was on rowdy movie sets, and I have done things that were not right, which I thought then was playful. But I now recognize that I have offended people. And to those people that I have offended, I want to say to them, I am deeply sorry about that, and I apologize.”
Schwarzenegger later told reporters that some of the allegations were “not true.” He added, “And then other things may be true, and in case it is, that’s why I said I want to apologize if I offended anyone, because that was not my intention.”
Schwarzenegger also fathered a love child with his former housekeeper, Mildred Baena. There were rumors about it in a National Enquirer article published in 2003, but it wasn’t until 2011 that Schwarzenegger admitted that Joseph is his son. He later told 60 Minutes that he started realizing Joseph was his son when he “started looking like me.”
Schwarzenegger was married to Maria Schriver for 25 years, until they split in 2011.
Comments
Donald Trump & Arnold Schwarzenegger: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know