The Terminator was terminated. At least, that's what President Trump wants you to think.
A day after Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his exit from NBC's The Celebrity Apprentice, blaming Trump for bringing "baggage" to the show that resulted in low ratings and an advertiser exodus, Trump has gotten on Twitter to fire back.
Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't voluntarily leaving the Apprentice, he was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me. Sad end to great show
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 4, 2017
"Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't voluntarily leaving the Apprentice," Trump wrote early Saturday morning (after an extended rant where Trump accused former President Barack Obama of tapping phones in Trump Tower in the closing months of the 2016 election). "He was fired by his bad (pathetic) ratings, not by me. Sad end to great show."
Trump had previously--and publicly--blamed Schwarzenegger for the show's slumping ratings, even asking at the National Prayer Breakfast for attendees to pray for Schwarzenegger. "It’s been a total disaster," the president said. "And I want to just pray for Arnold, if we can. For those ratings. Okay?”
Ratings for the show remained low, and the continued involvement of Trump as an executive producer added a level of distraction. "With Trump being involved in the show, people have a bad taste and don’t want to participate as a spectator or as a sponsor or in any other way support the show," Schwarzenegger said as he announced he would leave the show. "It’s a very divisive period now and I think this show got caught up in all that division.”
On one note, everyone seems to agree: for now, it's unlikely Celebrity Apprentice will return--at least while Trump remains in the White House. An NBC rep said yesterday cast and crew on the show were told there's no decision on a new season, and "longtime staffers have been told it's safe to look for other work."
Meanwhile, Schwarzenegger has responded:
You should think about hiring a new joke writer and a fact checker. https://t.co/SvAjuPdHfa
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) March 4, 2017
