Retired bodybuilder and former star of "The Incredible Hulk" Lou Ferrigno may be joining the Trump administration to "make America healthy again."
Ferrigno told the Daily Mail on Thursday that he knows President Donald Trump from his days on "The Celebrity Apprentice" and is his top pick to lead the President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition. Ferrigno expressed his support for Trump and addressed both the challenges the administration faces and Trump's own strengths.
"It is hard to be in politics," Ferrigno said. "Trump is a great president."
The president's fitness council falls under the Health and Human Services Department. Ferrigno, who starred as Marvel's Incredible Hulk character in the 1970s-1980s TV show, expressed excitement about joining the Trump administration.
"America voted for him and I am a top choice for him," Ferrigno said. "It is a shame because we have so many different problems. I feel safe with him when it comes to homeland security for our people."
"He went to a great college, he is an educated man, and I did ' The Celebrity Apprentice' with him," Ferrigno added. "He is a great man and he cares about his family. I don't care what anybody says. I really think he is a good-hearted person, and I feel safe with the guy."
Ferrigno said he thinks "there is no dark side to Donald Trump," but noted the president "is going through a hard time now to shake up the country."
The actor and fitness trainer said he has been in talks with Trump about the job and thinks he could make a difference for the country.
"I have been corresponding with President Trump because I want to change America and make America healthy again," Ferrigno said. "I am a top choice for them. I feel I am the best candidate for that."
Ferrigno argued that his fitness and life experience uniquely qualify him for the role.
"Nobody can surpass what I do, especially the life I have lived, what I have overcome and my passion with bodybuilding and fitness," he said.
Ferrigno also opined on Trump's handling of security issues. He said that Trump makes him feel safe even in the face of threats such as North Korea.
"Like I said, we are dealing with a lot of problems with homeland security and a lot of attacks, especially with North Korea," Ferrigno said. "I feel safe with him, because he is not an idiot — he is a smart man."
Ferrigno considers Trump a transformative leader in whom the American people believe.
"Think about this, that man was never in politics, but from the first debate he became the president. He didn't make the people vote for him, people wanted him because they believed in him."
The Obama administration's main initiative on nutrition and fitness came under the first lady's "Let's Move" campaign, while Ferrigno describes his vision as "combining the mind and the body together."
"I would focus on explaining to everyone, some people may have some physical handicaps or maybe injured knees, there are so many different machines and better ways to eat, and it is all about combining the mind and the body together," he said.
Michelle Obama crafted an expansive agenda that included major changes to federal guidelines on school lunches, which the Trump administration has repealed. She advocated for both healthy eating and physical exercise, including both at the same time, in the case of play structures shaped like carrots.