In the 1985 movie "Back to the Future," a scientist in 1955 is incredulous when teenager Marty McFly claims to have arrived from the future in a time machine. "Then tell me, future boy," Lloyd's character says, "who is president of the United States in 1985?"
"Ronald Reagan," McFly replies.
"Ronald Reagan! The actor? Who's vice president, Jerry Lewis? . . .I've had enough practical jokes for one evening."
The joke was that the one-time star of "Bedtime for Bonzo" really was the president of the United States. One wonders how that same 1985 audience would have reacted if told that Arnold Schwarzenegger, star of 1984's blockbuster "Terminator," might one day be the governor of the most populous state in the union.
Now, back in the present (and with "Terminator 3" in theaters nationwide), that scenario is being seriously discussed. California, fed up with a $38 billion deficit in the state budget, may be prepared to recall Gov. Gray Davis. Among the favorites to replace him is Schwarzenegger, the Austrian-born former bodybuilder.
Political purists are aghast at this possibility and would like to do some time-traveling of their own -- back to the good old days of serious and self-effacing statesmen. But they need to realize that celebrity always has been a component of democratic politics. George Washington was a renowned war hero before he became our president, as were Ulysses S. Grant, Teddy Roosevelt and Dwight Eisenhower.
That said, risking death in service of the country seems like a better test of leadership than does stalking around Hollywood sets with a shotgun full of blanks. Mr. Schwarzenegger might prove a gifted leader if elected, but for now he remains an unknown quantity. When pressed, he describes himself as a fiscal conservative with moderate views on social issues -- a soft-focus position bound to have appeal in a liberal state facing a fiscal crisis.
No matter his politics, having an action hero in a governor's mansion would still strike a lot of Americans as, well, too produced. One critic of Arnold's latest movie called it a "shamelessly money-lusting sequel that puts special effects ahead of creativity." That's not what one hopes for in a political leader, but don't despair just yet. Maybe someone from the future will send a cyborg to run against Arnold.
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