Maria Shriver: “I Was Taught Republicans Were the Enemy and Then I Fell in Love With a Republican”

Arnold Schwarzenegger and his ex-wife Maria Shriver separated a long time ago. However, once, the couple was deeply in love with each other. Despite their contrasting opinions and personalities, Schwarzenegger and Shriver were together for 25 years. However, coming from the renowned Kennedy family, Shriver had adapted to some strict family beliefs, especially against the opposition.

During a recent interview, the Emmy award-winning journalist, discussed how she learned to unlearn her parent’s opinions and embrace her own.

Maria Shriver talks about ‘falling’ for Arnold Schwarzenegger

Recently, Shriver featured on an episode of Making Space with Hoda Kotb, where she talked about her life experiences. During their candid discussion, Kotb asked Shirver how coming from a well-known family affected her and how her opinions differed compared to her family. To this, Shriver replied, “I grew up in a strict Democratic family, and I was taught that typically the Republicans were the enemy. And then I fell in love with a Republican.”

Although Schwarzenegger and Shriver landed on opposite sides of the political spectrum, the two were once inseparable. Hence, unlearning her family’s ideologies and beliefs was hard for the author. Yet, over time she learned to put herself first over what her family had taught her. “We all wonder like, is this my opinion, or is this my parents’ opinion? Or is this just something like I heard and adapted? And I think it’s a gradual process,” explained Shriver.

After their marriage, the couple moved to Los Angeles as Schwarzenegger stepped into the acting world. And Shriver often made red-carpet appearances with her husband, which also worried her mother. She added, “My mother was like, ‘You are in Hollywood, and that is terrible,’ and I was like, ‘Is it?’”

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While Shriver was trying to follow her own beliefs, her mother also seemed to grow fond of her famous son-in-law. Schwarzenegger once revealed how his mother-in-law helped him during his political career.

When Schwarzenegger received a big cheque 

During one of his appearances on a talk show, the host asked him about Teddy Kennedy’s decision to not campaign against Schwarzenegger in the 2004 election. Schwarzenegger replied that his mother-in-law, Eunice, would have “bitten off” her husband’s head if he did so.

Further, Schwarzenegger also revealed that during his campaign, she gave him a cheque for $23,000, despite him being a republican candidate. However, she had asked the former Governor of California to keep it a secret.

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Due to Schwarzeengger’s outgoing and loving personality, people often drew close to him, despite their first impression of the legend. The same seems to have worked with Shirver’s parents and the rest of the Kennedy family. However, if Maria Shriver had not gone against her family’s opinion, her and Schwarzenegger’s story would have been incomplete.