Arie Luyendyk Jr. may be the only person in America with a lower approval rating than Donald Trump right now.
The embattled Bachelor, however, does have something going for him that the President does not:
The love and support of a beautiful woman by his side.
Indeed, Arie proposed on television for the second time in two nights on Tuesday, getting down on one knee and asking Lauren Burnham to be his wife.
He did this on ABC’s After the Rose special…
… about 24 hours after millions of viewers witnessed him previously proposing to Becca Kufrin, only to them dump her in front of network cameras a short while later because he still wasn’t over Lauren.
(We also learned last night that Arie made sure Lauren wanted him back prior to having this talk with Becca on national TV. He’s a real class act.)
“I made some bad decisions, but the best decision was running back to you. I can’t imagine a life without you,” Arie said Tuesday during proposal number-two.
While down on one knee in front of Lauren, he added:
“You have shown me a love that is patient, a love that is kind, and I truly believe you are my soulmate.
“I’m ready to face this life with you and all that comes with it … the good and the bad. I love you so much.
“I want to do this in front of everyone because I want to show you that I should have done this a long time ago.”
How sweet, right?
Or how nauseating, depending on how you look at it.
Lauren, of course, looks at it in a very positive manner, as she explains in the latest issue of People Magazine.
“I totally respect his decision to follow his heart,” Burnham tells the publication as part of an extensive cover story, adding:
“I don’t blame him for it, and I think it’s made us stronger in the end.”
No one really blames Arie for following his heart; the main criticism stems from the way in which he and ABC fooled Becca into thinking she was spending a romantic weekend with her then-fiance…
… only to film Arie’s heartbreaking ambush.
But Becca is now The Bachelorette.
So maybe everyone made out just fine in the end?
As for how Arie even approached Lauren and let her know he was still thinking of her?
“He texted me on New Year’s Eve, ‘I think this is maybe crossing the line, but I’d like to talk,’” she says, admitting:
“I did have some reservations [at the time]. I was just afraid he would change his mind again.”
But the two had a lengthy conversation and Burnham was convinced the reality star was sure.
“I was just like, ‘We need to do it, you need to take the risk if this means a lot to you and you need to follow your heart. If not, then we don’t need to talk anymore."”
Fast forward a couple months and Lauren has a 3.65 carat diamond ring on her finger.
She’s also certain she’s found the man of her dreams to talk to forever, make love to forever and maybe even start a family with someday.
“It makes things easier for me knowing that he was able to be with Becca outside of this experience and he still knew that wasn’t what he wanted,” Lauren concludes to People.
“It gives me confidence in our relationship knowing that he truly wants to be with me and he took this huge risk to make it happen.”
