Schwarzenegger Hails 'american Hero' Mccain As His Pick for President

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today formally endorsed John McCain for the Republican nomination for president, adding his considerable popularity to a virtual sweep of top level Republican support for the Arizona senator.

Flanked by McCain and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who endorsed McCain yesterday as he abandoned his own campaign for the nomination, Schwarzenegger said, "He is a great American hero and a great leader. That is why I am endorsing him to be the next president of the United States."

Schwarzengger's endorsement was to be joined later today by the endorsement of another leading Republican, Texas governor Rick Perry. McCain, who represents Arizona, now commands the support of all the Republican border governors ahead of Super Tuesday next week. The support of Florida governor Charlie Crist on the eve of that state's primary was seen as crucial to McCain's victory.

Acknowledging the support of his old friend and ally, McCain praised Schwarzenegger as the embodiment of the American dream, calling him "the great American success story".

"He came to this country with nothing very much except for his talents, his strength and his ambition ... He is a role model and a guide to millions of Americans and people across the world."

The endorsement should buoy McCain's standing among independents and liberal Republicans in California, where the Arizona senator is ahead in the polls.

But Schwarzzengger is unpopular among conservative republicans in the state, and his endorsement could move some Republicans to other candidates.

McCain today denied that the image of the three liberal republican amigos standing together - McCain, Schwarzenegger and Giuliani - might hurt his standing among conservative Republicans, a key element of the broad coalition the Arizona senator intends to build. McCain said his "big tent" would embody the principles of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan.

"I will never be anything but honored by the presence of these two heroes," he said. "You will see a flood of endorsements from liberals and conservatives in the coming days. I am confident that for the majority of the conservatives in my party the number one priority is the threat of extremists."

The three Republicans appeared together during a visit to a solar roofing company in Los Angeles, a fact that gave Schwarzenegger an opportunity to indulge his Austrian sense of humor.

Looking out at the banks of cameras and the more than 100 journalists in the warehouse on an industrial corridor near downtown LA, Schwarzenegger declared: "This is the proof of how much excitement solar energy can create."

He said he had decided to support McCain after Giuliani had ended his candidacy. Until recently, Schwarzenegger had insisted that he would not endorse any of the Republican candidates.

"It's all Rudy's fault," he said. Both of them [McCain and Giuliani] are friends of mine and this is why I didn't want to endorse. I thought it was better to stay out of it."