Arnold Schwarzenegger has hit out at Democrats for wanting to ‘crash every city in America’
The former Republican governor of California had spoken to Rob Lowe as part of his podcast ‘Verbatim! With Rob Lowe’ when he made the remarks.
Lowe had asked the 76-year-old Terminator actor what it means to be a Republican and how it differs from being a Democrat.
The 59-year-old actor referred to Republican David Drier, who characterized the party as “strong military, low taxes, less government, more personal freedom.”
Lowe shifted the focus to what it means to be a Democrat, in response, Schwarzenegger said: ‘Destroy your cities. That’s what the Democrats would say.
“We are destroying the cities. We want to take over every city in America. That seems to be their theme now.’
Arnold Schwarzenegger discusses his book, “Be Helpful: Seven Tools for Life,” at the 92nd Street Y, Tuesday, October 10, 2023
The Terminator star said: “When you talk about the Republican philosophy, what you just said is what made me buy it.”
Schwarzenegger was referring to the ongoing problems with drug abuse, homelessness and the immigrant crisis affecting cities such as San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York City and Los Angeles.
Late last month, police in Philadelphia arrested twenty people after widespread looting broke out in the city.
At the time, officers said a large group of about 100 juveniles was moving from store to store to rob them.
Videos shared on social media during the chaos showed a large number of thieves raiding stores including Apple, Lululemon and Foot Locker.
In August, activist Frank Rodriguez revealed that business owners in the area had to come up with tricks to keep addicts away from their landing in the Kensington area.
This involved setting up digging traps including hidden sprinkler systems to avoid users.
The neighborhood’s blight has been fueled by the rise of the drug Xylazine, known as ‘tranq’ – a deadly sedative used to enhance the effects of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine.
Philadelphia has been gripped by drug-fueled crime under Democratic District Attorney Larry Krasner, a self-described “progressive prosecutor.”
His failure to strike led to his dismissal in 2022 for ‘malfeasance’, however he remains in office after his trial was postponed indefinitely.
GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who toured the area as part of his campaign, said earlier this year that the streets of Philly had turned into an ‘open drug market.’
There have been 343 homicides in the city this year as of Thursday, which is currently 19 percent lower than the same time last year.
At the end of last year, there had been 516 murders, down from 562 the year before.
Drug users either inject xylazine or smoke it, mixed with fentanyl and other drugs
The inner city has long been a magnet for drug users looking for their next high, but the scale of the problems caused by xylazine is shocking even to locals.
In nearby New York, Mayor Eric Adams last month declared that the ongoing migrant crisis would “destroy” the city.
Over the past 18 months the city has struggled to accommodate 122,000 people who have traveled across the border into the city.
The estimated costs to accommodate them are set at $4.7 billion. The staggering cost is equal to the city’s sewer, fire and parks budgets combined.
Mayor Adams has also asked a judge to end the city’s old ‘right to housing’ law, pushing for it to be overturned.
Gov. Kathy Hochul has also made a U-turn when it comes to asylum seekers, initially welcoming them with ‘open arms’ after pledging to house them for just three years before telling immigrants to ‘go somewhere else’ because the city is on the border. .
Speaking on CNN, Hochul said: “We have to understand that when you come to New York, you’re not going to have more hotel rooms, we don’t have the capacity.
“So we also need to send the right message that we’re at a border – if you’re going to leave your country, go somewhere else.”
Last week, Mayor Adams traveled to Mexico to discourage asylum seekers from coming to the city.
He said: “This is just the beginning of the journey of trying to be on the ground and understand the whole flow of migrants and asylum seekers.”
Hundreds of immigrants sleep in line early on August 1, to be settled in the reception center of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York.
Immigrants arrive in New York City and line up at 60 Center Street to enter Federal Plaza to report to immigration
On the West Coast, cities such as San Francisco and California, which Schwarzenegger once governed, have been filled with large numbers of homeless people.
The problems have gotten so bad in San Francisco that big corporations are now fleeing the city.
According to crime data recorded from January to September 2023, robberies saw a 15.9 percent increase from the previous year.
According to a recent study by consulting firm McKinsey, 70 percent of San Francisco residents cite homelessness among the city’s top three problems.
On any given night, 38,000 Bay Area residents are homeless, the study found.
The city has struggled with an overdose epidemic caused in part by the spread of the synthetic opioid fentanyl, which is up to 50 times more potent than heroin and deadly even in very small doses.
In August, the number of overdose deaths increased in the Bay Area city with 84 additional deaths, 66 of which involved fentanyl.
Open drug markets, overdose deaths, rampant shoplifting and violence have characterized the coastal city’s ‘doom loop’ as companies close up shop and tech workers opt to work from home.
A recent report showed that 95 downtown San Francisco retailers have closed since the start of the COVID pandemic, a drop of more than 50 percent.
Of the 203 retailers that opened in 2019 in the city’s Union Square area, only 107 are still operating, a 47 percent drop in just a few pandemic-ravaged years.
A woman in a wheelchair injects drugs at San Francisco’s notorious open-air drug market
The city has struggled with an overdose epidemic caused in part by the spread of the synthetic opioid fentanyl
A map reveals the top businesses that have left or plan to leave San Francisco in recent months
Around the state of California, citizens have fled in droves due to years of politics, soft crime policing and rampant homelessness.
A survey published earlier this year highlighted how citizens really felt about living in the liberal state.
The study found that a third of the state’s residents wanted to leave the state because of the ongoing issues.
Census data revealed in April that California has seen a population decline of more than 1 percent since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
High-profile movers include X and Tesla boss Elon Musk, who now resides in Austin, Texas.
Musk followed podcaster Joe Rogan who left the state and moved his family to Texas in 2020, selling his $3.5 million luxury estate in the process.
UFC color commentator, comedian and podcast host Joe Rogan left California for Texas with his family
Musk gestures while attending Viva Technology in Paris, France, June 16, 2023
Another factor in people’s movements may also be the progressive tax system that relies heavily on the wealthy and personal income tax rates.
The former bodybuilder’s remarks come just days after Schwarzenegger weighed in on the ongoing migrant crisis at the US-Mexico border.
On Monday’s The View, he mentioned his experience as an immigrant and criticized poor conditions on the nearly 2,000-mile crossing.
Schwarzenegger, who won his California governorship in 2003, said: “You really have to have comprehensive immigration reform and you have to look at this immigration problem in a comprehensive way.”
“Number one,” he said, was that he believes “very strongly in having a line that no one can cross.”
“That’s number one for me,” said the retired bodybuilder.
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