Arnold Schwarzenegger, former California governor and Hollywood actor, announced Tuesday that he will be the keynote speaker at this year’s Independence Day celebration at Mount Vernon, citing how he is a “proud American and a proud immigrant.”

Schwarzenegger, an Austrian who immigrated to the United States in 1968 and became a U.S. citizen in 1983, made the announcement during his appearance on The View to discuss immigration. He dismissed co-host Joy Behar‘s question about the Los Angeles riots against illegal immigration raids and opted to talk about how he is “so proud and happy” to have been embraced by the U.S. when arriving in the country. He said there is “no other country in the world” that would have allowed him to create the career he has had.