Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Learning How Rough Politics Is
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: It has been quite a week for Arnold Schwarzenegger. He is riding high in the polls. And that is the good news for him, but Arnie is also learning that politics is a rough game. He is being dogged by accusations of bad behavior around women and rumors that he admires Hitler. So how is all of this playing with his wife of 17 years, Maria Shriver? How is she handling the cut and thrust of the political game? Well to get some insight on what it must be like for her, we're going to talk with one of her friends, a radio talk show host and television personality. We all know her as Dr. Judy. Hi there, Dr. Judy. Good to see you.</s>DR. JUDY, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Hi, hi, Carol. How are you?</s>LIN: You actually went to their engagement party. I mean, how do you explain them as a couple and why she stays with him through this?</s>DR. JUDY: Well, Maria and Arnold are a very special couple. And Maria's a very special woman. Even having seen them at their engagement party, what is it 18 years ago or so, they are a dynamic duo and a power couple. And Maria herself is an interesting combination, because she's like every woman in the sense that she is absolutely devoted to her family. She's fiercely loyal about them and protective about her children, and even her husband. And you can see that today. On the other hand, she's not like all the rest of us because she comes from a legacy. And that's why she stands by her man. When Tammy Wynette sang that song, and when we saw even Hillary Clinton standing by her man, Maria is very special. She comes from political savvy. She has the Kennedy experience behind her. And...</s>LIN: But Dr. Judy, why is it political savvy? And why is it a good thing to stay with a man who, you know, strips down -- who may have stripped down in his dressing room and tackled women, grabbed their breasts, and treated them this way?</s>DR. JUDY: Well, there's a bigger vision in mind that these couples have. That's why they're not like all the rest of us. But I must say that there are a lot of women, and I talk to them all the time and have counseled them for now 30 years of my career, who will stand by their man when men have done sometimes even more egregious things that are shocking and hurtful and that make women feel upset and cry...</s>LIN: But tell me why?</s>DR. JUDY: And they do that -- well, there's a combination of factors. It's not just one thing. You have to look at, first of all, the economics of it. Maria certainly doesn't need that, but a lot of normal average women do. They look at family. And that's something for Maria and for a lot of average women, too. What about protecting my kids and the family unit? And I think we can respect and honor that, because we need that family today. Look at some of the interpersonal dynamics, too. Women weigh these things. The average woman does and Maria does, too, in weighing okay, this is a problem, but what else do I see about this man that I can respect and that I value? And on top of that, in terms of Maria and what's going on now, as it has been for Rose Kennedy, by the way, and Jackie Kennedy, too, who put up with many of these kinds of behaviors and instead said, they were going to protect their family. And they were looking at what was the vision for the country and the family and the Camelot mystique.</s>LIN: Well, so what should...</s>DR. JUDY: In a sense, Maria and Arnold have inherited that.</s>LIN: But what should other women learn from this experience?</s>DR. JUDY: I think what other women should learn is to really pay attention to some of the signs earlier, because preventing the escalation of these behaviors by confronting them, and by coming out really in the open about it, and solving the problems. When a man strays and does certain behaviors, it has to do with his own needs for attention, his own egotistical needs. Sometimes what problems may be going on in the relationship...</s>LIN: All right, Dr. Judy, thank you very much. We'll all learn from the experience and see how the election turns out. For all we know, she may be Firs Lady. Dr. Judy, thanks so much for joining us. USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com