DAN RATHER: And I raised that very subject of a possible recall now directed against Schwarzenegger in an exclusive CBS interview with the governor-elect just a short while ago.

In your judgment, is there going to be a recall of the recall effort made?

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R-Calif.): I am only thinking of one thing, and that is to move forward with the state. I mean, the people have spoken loud and clear yesterday. They want me to be their governor. They want me to make the changes, as--as I've promised them. And that's what I'm concentrating on. So I don't think there will be any means--mean-spiritedness going on. I mean, th--maybe that's naive to think that, you know, to--be--I--because I'm new at this. But, I mean, I think that we will be able to wor--to--to work together and in a positive way, and we will make a tremendous impact in this state.

RATHER: I recognize you said all through the campaign that you would turn the state around economically, but you know the facts. You s--say you're not going to raise taxes. Eighty percent of the current spending is mandated by law. So how can you possibly do what you said you'd do in the campaign?

SCHWARZENEGGER: I know I will be able to do those kind of things. I know we will be able to bring the economy back. I know that we will be working on a budget deficit and try to cut that down. You know, the thing is--is that as you get into this whole thing, you realize, of course, that it is much worse than it really was set out to be. Senator Feinstein told me today that it could very well be that within the next month or two we will find out that it will be actually $20 billion. So, I mean, this is--you know, you have to deal with those kind of issues as they come along. There's a lot of hidden things right now going on. That's why I always said, you know, there's--there are more--there are more special effects in our budget than in "Terminator 3."

RATHER: Nice soundbite. On the other side, one of the more favorite soundbites is 'Listen, Arnold Schwarzenegger does not have any idea of a detailed plan, so therefore he's running, quote, "voodoo economics,"' which is something that's left over from the Reagan years, as you know.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, one thing we know for sure, and that is that the past administration has had all the ideas and all the details. And what happened? One thing I know for sure that I have is the will to fight for the people.

RATHER: You've been through a lot with these accusations about your past. I want to ask you a hypothetical question. If your wife came to you and said that some man had groped and grabbed her, and she used words like 'disgusted,"afraid, 'humiliated' to describe how she felt, as a husband, as a man, what would you do?

SCHWARZENEGGER: She has come to me in the past and said that, so, I mean, I totally understand that. But let's not forget that I have said that in the past that I apologized if I offended anyone, and I take those charges seriously. And I was hurt because I read a lot of things that are not true. But to those who might be true, I want to let them know that I feel terrible about that.

RATHER: As you know, Senator Orrin Hatch and Tom DeLay, Republican power in the House, have a movement under way to amend the Constitution so that you could run for president. How does President Arnold Schwarzenegger sound to you?

SCHWARZENEGGER: I have no interest in running for any higher office. I have gone into this not to start a political career. I got into this because I thought that I can help California.

RATHER: You once said, 'I always believed in shooting for the top.' So as I speak to you, I have this in mind in saying to myself, 'Surely Arnold Schwarzenegger sometime is going to want to go for the top.'

SCHWARZENEGGER: I'm telling you, this--this--only until recently have I started thinking about even running for governor. This was not my goal. I mean, my goal was always, you know, to be an actor and entertainer and to move from acting to producing and directing eventually. But then when the problem came up three years ago already in California and I saw California taking a--a dive economically and I saw people losing jobs and so on, I started thinking seriously about running because this is my favorite place in the world.

RATHER: Schwarzenegger also says he will not make any more movies while serving as governor.

A political note: Among the Democrats who Republican Schwarzenegger will soon have to work with is Cruz Bustamante, who not only stays on as lieutenant governor but also ran against Schwarzenegger in the recall election. Bustamante today promised his cooperation, and he also said this: "I'm ready to roll--roll up my sleeves and get to work, but I also know how to say no," unquote.