Schwarzenegger launches counter-attacks on rivals

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, October 05, 2003

Schwarzenegger launches counter-attacks on rivals

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Hollywood actor-turned candidate Arnold Schwarzenegger continued to attack opponents Saturday, denouncing the latest sexual harassment accusations on him as part of his rivals' conspiracy to torpedo his campaign for Californian governor.

During a stop near Clovis on Day 3 of his bus trip across California, the Austrian-born candidate denied the sexual harassment accusations issued by five more women on Friday.

The women came out after the break of the Los Angeles Times story in which six women accused Schwarzenegger of fondling or grabbing their breasts in movie set or other occasions.

"The last accusations that I read today are absolutely untrue. They're trying to torpedo my campaign. They're trying to make me look bad out there so that people vote no," Schwarzenegger said.

"Why has this not come out before? Why have they not called me?If someone said this to me I would apologize immediately," he said.

On Thursday, Schwarzenegger apologized for having sometimes "behaved badly" toward women, saying he was just being playful.

He denounced on Friday the 11th hour accusations as part of hisrivals' conspiracy to smear him in order to prevent him from taking over the governor's office in the Oct. 7 vote.

The New York Times and ABC News also revealed Friday that Schwarzenegger said in a 1975 interview that he admired former Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, because Hitler rose to power from "a little man with almost no formal education." He reportedly said he wished he could have experienced the thrill Hitler must have had in speaking to huge audiences who agreed with everything he said.

Schwarzenegger on Friday denied the reports, saying he did not recall making any such comments. He said he despises everything Hitler stood for.

Meanwhile, Austrian gym owner Kurt Marnul said Saturday he did not believe that Schwarzenegger could have liked Hitler. Schwarzenegger began body-building training at Marnul's gym when he was 15 years old.

The Democratic National Committee issued a resolution Saturday,urging Schwarzenegger to apologize for the alleged Hitler remarks.

Governor Gray Davis, target of the historic California recall campaign, warned voters Saturday that the election of Schwarzenegger who acknowledged mistreatment of women "is going todistract the state from the work it has to do."

The new accusations against Schwarzenegger surfaced as the campaigning in the recall race reached its peak ahead of the Oct. 7 vote. Latest polls showed Schwarzenegger leading with 40 percentof support, against 32 percent for Democrat's leading candidate and Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante.

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