For the second time since the war in Iraq began, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger visited with US troops in the region.  He landed in Baghdad, spoke for a few minutes, posed for photographs with soldiers, and handed out autographs and cigars.  He also reportedly worked out with the troops at Camp Victory.

Schwarzenegger has long been a military favorite, both for his machismo and for his support of the military.  In what may be a little known fact, Schwarzenegger has been an ardent supporter of deployed servicemembers.  In both the Gulf War in 1991 and in the most recent combat that began in 2003, he has donated his time, fame, and resources to support the troops.  This has been most visible to deployed servicemembers in their local gyms, which were often made possible by Schwarzenegger’s direct intervention.

In both 1991 and 2003 Schwarzenegger coordinated the delivery of gym equipment to the combat theatre for use by American troops, some of whom had been making-do with homemade weight equipement in the austere conditions.  In the deployed environment, distractions are few, and the gym–if there is one–is often both a place to meet one’s goals and work out one’s stress.  While air bases tend to be more developed because of their locations and resource requirements, members of all military branches may serve in harsh and restrictive conditions.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s role in providing gym equipment for deployed US military troops, particularly without any evident ulterior motive, has not been lost on the American servicemembers, and they have repaid his kindness by making him a virtual, if not an actual, hero in their eyes.