The Last Day of Gov. Schwarzenegger

Every other headline is going to say that Arnold Schwarzenegger says "hasta la vista, baby" to the governor's office tomorrow in California, so let's just say that the Austrian's term has been terminated by term limits. Swept into office in 2003 in the recall of Gov. Gray Davis -- a most interesting election that included Gary Coleman and porn star Mary Carey (who wanted to eliminate the deficit by taxing breast implants) on the ballot -- Schwarzenegger won a second term in 2006 by well over a million votes over his Democratic challenger. And while it may have seemed weird for some that Conan the Barbarian was in charge of the eighth largest economy in the world, to Californians (myself included) it was electing a leader in one of the state's largest and most prominent industries. Now it's back to Jerry Brown, aka Gov. Moonbeam, who began serving his first term the year I was born.

But what next for Arnold? There was so much buzz around his recall election and impassioned speech the following year at the Republican National Convention that there was talk of changing the Constitution so that someone who is not a natural-born citizen can run for president. That's pretty much yesterday's chatter now as Schwarzenegger leaves office with the state still in financial crisis and a gridlocked legislature that can't hardly pass a budget each year. Some wondered if Arnold would seek a Senate seat, as one of California's two senators firmly entrenched in Washington got a run for her money this fall from a Republican challenger. I was standing there among the other media when Schwarzenegger endorsed Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the 2008 presidential election, and his endorsement will still likely be sought in the future as he carries the mantle of more moderate Republicans. But he'll also likely dedicate his time to business interests and causes such as the Special Olympics and environmental interests.

What do you think?

(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)