ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
April 28, 2008
10 Questions For Maria Shriver
TIME and TFK get some answers from author Maria Shriver
TFK Kid Reporter Yunhee Hyun joined the managing editor of TIME Magazine to interview the First Lady of California, Maria Shriver. Her husband, former actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, is the Republican governor of California. She is also well known as the niece of former President John F. Kennedy. Her famous family aside, Shriver has achieved plenty in her own right. She is a best-selling author, an award-winning journalist and an advocate for public service in America. Her new book Just Who Will You Be? comes out this month.
Yunhee asked the questions for TFK and TIME Managing Editor Rick Stengel posed questions from readers across the United States.
TFK:
Why do you think it's important for young people like me to volunteer?
Maria Shriver:
First of all, I think it's fun. You meet a lot of people when you volunteer that you might not ever get a chance to meet. You see that you can make a huge difference in someone's life. You can clean beaches, build playgrounds, paint murals and teach other kids who might not know how to read, or who don't get a chance to do arts and crafts. You can do all kinds of things and, best of all, it makes you feel good.
TFK:
What do you tell your kids to encourage them?
Maria Shriver:
That's a really good question. Well, I hope it encourages them when I tell them that I love them for who they are. I tell them they can be whoever they want to be and accomplish whatever they want to accomplish.
 |  Maria Shriver joins TIME Managing Editor Rick Stengel after the interview. |
TIME:
If you didn't get into broadcast journalism, what do you think you'd be doing today?
Maria Shriver:
Journalism was a great fit for me, but I love to write. And I've discovered that I'm actually a very creative person. I love to write poetry, I love to read, I like writers, so I probably would have been a writer of either poetry or nonfiction.
TIME:
You wrote a book about becoming who you are. How do you help your children become who they are?
Maria Shriver:
I try to say to my children, I love you for who you are. You don't have to get into some fancy college. You don't have to become President of the United States. If you want to open a coffee shop or a bakery, I love you. And you, and you alone, are good enough.
TIME:
Do you ever find yourself at odds with being from a prominent Democratic family and being married to a Republican?
Maria Shriver:
It's definitely different to be married to someone from a different political party. It has really taught me to look beyond labels, which is something my dad was really adamant about. Get rid of all that and look at who the person is, and you're much better off.
TIME:
Would you ever go into politics?
Maria Shriver:
No, I really wouldn't. That's a question that has really been on my back since I was little. Everybody says it to you all the time: You should run, you should run. But I always ask myself, Are they saying that because of who you are or who they want you to be?
TIME:
How would you react if John McCain asked your husband to be his running mate?
Maria Shriver:
First of all, it's not going to happen because of the Constitution. (Arnold Schwarzenegger was born in Austria. Someone born outside the U.S. could not be in line for the presidency.) I checked it out. (But) that would be a huge challenge. We have Barack Obama and McCain signs driving up to our house, one on one side and one on the other... It's really important to understand that there are different points of view. What you need to do is be gracious enough to listen, with a capital L, to the other point of view, because only sticking with your point of view and looking at the "other" as the enemy will get you nowhere-in politics, in business, and in life. That's been a wonderful side effect of marrying someone in another party.
TIME:
Would you be in favor of amending the Constitution to allow foreign-born citizens to run for president or vice president?
Maria Shriver:
Yes, I would. We are a nation of immigrants and (the law) excludes millions and millions of people who might be able to make a tremendous difference. So I think the actual location of your birth shouldn't disqualify you. I think the American people are smart enough, engaged enough, involved enough to make the decision about the person, not the place of the birth of the person. But it's a really long process to change the Constitution.
TIME:
What is Michelle Obama like? Do you think she would make a good First Lady?
Maria Shriver:
She came and spoke at the women's conference where we had all the spouses come together. I found her to be very gracious, smart and funny. I have to say I was really impressed with all of them. They will change the perception of the spouse in American politics, which I think needs to be updated.
TIME:
What is your favorite Arnold Schwarzenegger movie?
Maria Shriver:
True Lies or Twins. That is who Arnold is: funny. That's what caught my attention, believe it or not, about him. I hadn't met anybody like that.
TIME:
What do you want to be doing in 10 years?
Maria Shriver:
At 16 I said, I want to be a journalist. I want to work on a newsmagazine. I want to do a documentary. I had it all planned out. Now I'm gentler with myself. I say, I'm a work in progress-I could be writing books in ten years, I could be living on an island, I could be traveling around the world. I think that's both exciting and terrifying.
