Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was once named chairman of the Council on Physical Fitness and Sports in 1990 by former President George Bush, shared a close relationship with the United States’ first family. One can say that Schwarzenegger’s marriage to now ex-wife Maria Shriver and his bodybuilding success earned him these famous political friendships.

However, even after spending years with them, Schwarzenegger once revealed that he purposely stayed away from his friends, George and Barbara Bush, for their own good. And he was not joking! Here is what made Schwarzenegger take the precautionary step back then.

Arnold Schwarzenegger maintained his distance from the Bush family!

In 1991, Schwarzenegger appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman to promote his movie, Terminator 2. Besides talking about the film, Letterman also asked “The Austrian Oak” about his friendship with then-President George Bush and first lady Barabara. To which Schwarzenegger quickly replied, “Well, I’m not gonna hang around for a while with them.”

Due to the actor’s humorous personality, the host and the audience thought he was joking. However, Schwarzenegger reasoned why and said, “No I’m serious, because I think it was January, I was invited to Camp David, and we had a good time up there, going sled riding, and Barbara broke her leg, and she was hospitalized.” But that was not the end of the story.

“May 1st I got back to the Great American workout to the White House. I exercise with the President with 800 children that were on the south lawn. The next day he gets hospitalized. This is it. I better get out for a while because we want to keep him in the White House, not in the hospital,” revealed the legendary actor.

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However, Bush never blamed Schwarzenegger for the accidents. In fact, Bush was one of the reasons the bodybuilder-turned-actor also dreamed of becoming a politician.

George Bush helped Arnold become a Governor

One of the main reasons Schwarzenegger moved from Austria to the States was to become a famous personality. With his incredible bodybuilding and acting success, the legend achieved his long-term dream.

However, once when President Bush asked him to be a part of his book as an immigrant who impacted the country, Schwarzenegger was moved. It gave rise to a new dream and thus began Schwarzenegger’s political career.

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Later, from 2003 to 2011, Schwarzenegger successfully served as the Governor of California and again became an inspiration for thousands.