California Governor Newsom Says the Democratic Brand Is 'Toxic'

[Polybius]

Source: NY Times

Gov. Gavin Newsom of California said on Friday that the Democratic brand was “toxic” and that his party had to admit its own mistakes, delivering tough love as Democrats struggle in their fight against the Trump administration.

Mr. Newsom, once considered a liberal combatant, has embarked on a political soul search in the months since President Trump won the White House and Republicans won both houses of Congress. On Friday, he used his strongest language yet to criticize his own party during an appearance on “Real Time With Bill Maher.”

“The Democratic brand is toxic right now,” he said, pointing to a recent NBC News poll that showed Democrats with a 27 percent favorability rating, the lowest in at least a generation.

Mr. Newsom, a possible 2028 presidential candidate, blamed his fellow Democrats for his party’s woes. He criticized Democrats for being judgmental, staying in an echo chamber and resorting to “cancel culture” to ostracize people whose views they find abhorrent.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/29/us/politics/newsom-democrats-toxic.html

[Traildogbob]

4. What the hell

Has he and Fetterman been smoking. He thinks those guests of his are non toxic? They are on the Ye high.
Go ahead and wear the Red arm band with a big ass X on it. The hair product ate his brain.

[NotHardly]

58. Becoming a Repug at warp speed... red alert! red alert!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

133. Could he even get re-elected Governor if he was eligible?! Somehow I doubt it.

[Polybius]

9. Oh come on

Overuse of the word "Nazi" cheapens the word for when we really need to use it. It was wrong enough to call Bush a Nazi 20+ years ago. Calling Gavin one is far worse.

[Think. Again.]

11. Perhaps you haven't noticed...

...but with the things republIcans are doing lately, we really do need to use the word NAZI.

[Polybius]

12. Yes, I'm not disagreeing with that

But Gavin isn't even close to that level. He's far from a Nazi.

[LudwigPastorius]

76. "He's far from a Nazi."

Except, when he is right next to one.

[Polybius]

88. I have no idea who that is

Does Gavin know who he is? Or did a random person ask to take a pic with him?

[LudwigPastorius]

93. That's Charlie Kirk.

He was the first featured guest on the Governor’s “This Is Gavin Newsom” podcast.

[Polybius]

89. I can't believe the amout of people calling Gavin a Nazi in this thread

You'd think that they would have learned from the very first post in this thread.

[thought crime]

99. collaborator? A Vichy Democrat? /nt

[MayReasonRule]

29. Nixon Was Fascism 1.0 -- Bush & Bush Was Fascism 2.0

We now are at...


Those that support "the same" are the same.

That's just basic logic.

I'll save the rest of my two cents regarding Gavin for Blue Sky.

[Polybius]

45. Nixon was a criminal

Bush certainly lied to get support for his illegal war. I won't call them Nazis however. That's such a strong word. Regular fascist maybe.

[MayReasonRule]

47. History Demonstrates That Silence Is Complicity

The Bush's silence speaks volumes.

They remain members of the ongoing fascist criminal enterprise that is the GOP.

History also demonstrates that those that support the same are the same.

Happy Saturday to you and yours.

Whatever you do don't let the bastards get ya' down!
Seize your day and...

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

79. I wouldn't call them Nazis either... I'd call them fucking Nazis!!

[Polybius]

90. Yeah sure

Ford and Eisenhower too right?

[Cirsium]

85. MAGA is worse

MAGA may turn out to be worse than Nazi, when all is said and done. I don't think there is a need anymore to protect the word Nazi from being over used. I think it has lost its power because the people who lived through that era are all gone. But it still has power and meaning for us and we should be free to use it here. Out there, it means less and less to people.

[Walleye]

2. Oh Gavin, Democrats want to inflict universal healthcare on population

Stand up for women’s rights and the rights of minorities. Very toxic you asshole. Out there in California with all the media at his fingertips and he does this.

[ificandream]

36. He's done that and more in his career.

He's not saying to move backward on that stuff. He's pointing out that the public ate at the Republican trough in the last election. He wants Democrats and the public to have the love for their platform that elected Obama and Biden. Some of the public is soured on that right now. That needs to turn around.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

132. Gavin was sposed to be a "Super Pol." I liked him but he's now holdin the back of the line of potential 2028 candidates.

[UpInArms]

3. What is toxic is having been married

To Guilfoyle …

What is toxic is having a good bro time with

Charlie Kirk

F you, newsome

[FalloutShelter]

19. I second this.

He has chosen to surround himself with questionable people for years.

[ificandream]

37. If you mean Guilfoyle, she was a liberal before she turned stupid.

Thank Don Jr. and probably his drugs for that.

[UpInArms]

50. Nah ...

She went to faux Snews before jr … she is who and what she is and always has been …

A grifting MAGAt

[madville]

67. And he cheated on her

With the wife of his most senior advisor/aide. That was when he was mayor of SF so been a minute.

[Granny Blue]

128. BS! Sorry not sorry

She’s an adult who makes her own decisions and infantilizing her says a whole lot more about you than her!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

82. I know I'm done with him... ZERO chance he gets the 2028 nomination, at least not for the Democratic Party!!

[Bengus81]

102. Agree....that fucker is toast. He just DeSantis's himself AND much faster.

[FirstLight]

5. welp, so much for thinking things would be better here in CA

He's proving to be more slimy than I thought...

[Traildogbob]

6. Oh!!!!!the Gargoyle toxins got him

Watch, he will have bubble lips soon.

[BootinUp]

7. If you poll people subjected to propaganda

You learn about the propaganda’s effectiveness.

[no_hypocrisy]

8. Wait, wut?

Since when have Bernie, AOC, Katie Porter, Adlai Stevenson, LBJ, FDR, and even Teddy Roosevelt been “toxic?

[ificandream]

38. That's not what he's saying. It's the public's attitude toward the party he's talking about.

After all, who did they vote for last November? Kamala was the perfect choice. They picked the orange idiot.

[no_hypocrisy]

40. That's stile over substance.

[maxsolomon]

124. Bernie Sanders isn't a Dem.

He's "Independent".

[highplainsdem]

10. Wow, has he misread the room!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

81. That's a major understatement!! Watch for Newsom backpedal in 3... 2... 1...

[ms liberty]

13. Big mistake, Gav.

[Bengus81]

103. On edit..Charlie Kirk was his second big mistake. First was raising the flags

to full staff to please Donald FUCKING Trump and disrespecting the HELL out of Jimmy Carter.

I can't say FUCK YOU enough Gavin. Hey...you had me SUCKERED in for quite awhile.

[Scrivener7]

14. Jeez. He can't stop shooting himself in the foot these days, can he?

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

115. It's crazy... why throw your base under a bus?! Makes no sense!!

[Scrivener7]

117. Our leaders, if they were smart, would be speaking of nothing but our strengths.

We need to understand where we are weak, but those with a voice should not be saying it. And PS, what he is talking about is NOT where we're weak.

That's where a PR firm and a dedicated, coordinated communications plan would come in real handy.

[Granny Blue]

127. Why? For the 30 peices of silver, of course

And all that sweet sweet Leon cash!

[Blue Full Moon]

15. Showing his true colors

[CountMyVote4Reality]

16. Guilty. I don't consort with nazis.

It is one thing to reach out. It is another to switch and abandon.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

17. No comment.

[Quiet Em]

18. Gavin Newsom's messaging is toxic

Not what we need going forward. Hope he enjoys his retirement from politics.

[kimbutgar]

20. i am so disgusted by my governor

he sold himself out to the orange Hitler party.

[House of Roberts]

21. So you do a poll about Democratic Party favorability

right after Schumer pisses off about half the Democrats. First all the MAGAts vote unfavorable, then the rest of the country weighs in at one level or another of 'favorability', and you have 27% that support what the majority of Democratic politicians are doing. The rest are dissatisfied and want serious pushback they aren't seeing. I never expect these favorability numbers to reflect actual support for one party or another.
Newsome wants to run for president without being branded a Hollywood liberal, and so he says crap like this. He won't get my vote in a primary and this will not be forgotten.

[regnaD kciN]

30. ...and the solution, of course, is to "move to the center"...

(I'm reminded of my wife's comment back when President Clinton made yet another unnecessary "compromise" with Republicans that gave them what they asked for without getting anything in return, "If he 'moves to the center' one more time, he's going to fall into the Atlantic.&quot

[Solly Mack]

22. Appeal to bigots and theocrats and it will become toxic to me.

Repercussions for being a racist or misogynist isn't being "canceled" - it's what should happen to people who are bigots/racists/misogynists.

Can't stop them from hating, but we must stop them from acting on it. Their hate doesn't give them the right to harm others.

If that attitude is toxic to anyone, well - good.

[hedda_foil]

23. Gavin, Gavin, Gavin. You've just cut your political throat, you aging pretty boy, you.

You've also shown that you have no real policy beliefs (aka political soul) but we should have known that from your marriage to Biglips Gilfoyle.

Democrats aren't ever going to elect you president. Hell, you won't get past the first primaries. And switching parties (which you may or may not be currently considering) won't help you either. The Republicans you're currently sucking up to will never in a million years settle for you as Trump's successor.

The stupidity of this move boggles the mind.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

84. Agreed, the only way I'd vote for him at this point is if he pulls off a MIRACLE to become our party's nominee in 2028.

[Nigrum Cattus]

24. It's only toxic because of people like Newsom

He is a corporate "democrat" and will try and use the
repug theft of the 2024 election to turn the democrats
right. It will not work and he won't be the "leader".

[kacekwl]

25. Bullshit.

[bluestarone]

26. Not sure about this. I'll wait until Californians decide.

We sure as hell don't want to lose California. That would be a nightmare for sure.

[Oneironaut]

27. Yay! More trans bashing.

It wouldn’t be real time without a week of Bill Maher agreeing with someone else that Trans people are weird, destroying this country, and need to be removed from the Democratic Party entirely.

[Lifeafter70]

83. I hope that I will be n the majority

Who believe the trans community enriches us.
I will continue to support and speak up.

Maher is a very small man

[Zorro]

28. And just like that...Poof!

There just went his opportunity to be the Democratic nominee in 2028.

[Magoo48]

31. As a Californian, I'm disappointed. Appeasement is not the way forward; resistance is the way forward.

I was convinced our California Republic had strong leadership beginning at the top. Seemingly, I was wrong.

[flashman13]

32. Gavin Newsom is a "Toxic Sellout". I expect him to announce he is a Repug any day now.

[Bengus81]

106. He might but MAGOTS won't vote for him.........

He's fucked himself over with his new Podcast and having Kirk and Bannon as his first to guests...and not even challenging them. The writing was on the wall then,this shit is the icing on the cake.

[flashman13]

112. You are absolutely right that MAGAts won't vote for him.

He has destroyed any credibility he may have had with Democrats. Nice work Gavin.

[ificandream]

33. I think the press needs to stop taking his comments out of context.

They won't, of course, because it makes good clickbait. But Newsom has been one of the strongest Democrats over the last few years in his support of the party and also a pioneer of LBGTQ rights. While appearing on Bill Maher is probably not the best place to be since Maher these days is so freaking full of himself, he's saying what should be said. Don't believe for a minute he has turned conservative. He's a staunch liberal. He wants this party to recover.

[GoreWon2000]

72. NYT has a long history of attacking dems

There's no better example than Campaign 2000.

[ificandream]

75. True journalism is not a fan club.

Negative stories doesn’t mean they’re bad. It’s how factual they are.

[GoreWon2000]

121. NYT has long ignored actual facts

in order to help repugs. They certainly did so in 2000

[ificandream]

122. Name one.

[GoreWon2000]

123. W's claim that he was a "compassionate conservative"

Anyone who believes in forcing women to give birth against their will is not compassionate. Anyone who believes that the federal government should control women's bodies believes in big government. The NYT let W get away with this lie for the entire campaign while they viciously attacked Al Gore for telling the truth. I highly recommend that you scroll threw the archives of the Daily Howler blog. It's the only written record that I'm aware of that documents the media's war against Al Gore. The NYT features prominently.

[ificandream]

125. If Bush was actually quoted as saying it, the Times is likely to report it. There's nothing wrong there.

It's a quote from him, not something made up. The judgment, in this case, is not really up to the Times. If Bush called himself a compassionate conservative, go after Bush, not the Times. The Times is only there to report facts. That's their job. To report facts.

And what was Gore attacked for, specifically?

As far as the Daily Howler, it's a blog, not a news source. Anyone can start a blog and say whatever they want.

[Granny Blue]

129. Gore was attacked for

1) Advocating that Social Security contributions be put in a “Lockbox” to prevent GOP THeft
2) Wearing brown suits
3) advocating for measures to mitigate climate change
4)Serving as a journalist in the Vietnam conflict
5)Being too “smart” and not chummy to the working man
6) being raised in DC where his father was the author of the federal highway system
7)Spending summers on his grandfather’s farm in Tennessee
8) Breathing

Some of us remember! And I quit reading the NYT after that. Can you imagine how much better of we would be if he had been elected instead of Bush the Lesser? Any other questions?

[ificandream]

130. I agree about Gore over Bush would have been better.

As for the rest, I don’t remember any of that.

[betsuni]

131. "Lockbox" was the big joke on SNL, for late night comics.

Mocked for wearing "earth tones" like brown that feminist Naomi Wolf had suggested (not manly).

Global warming was a joke for a really long time. If it snowed, get ready for a snarky Al Gore joke.

Mocked for claiming to have invented the internet, which of course he never said -- jokes about that for decades, and that he and Tipper were the inspiration for "Love Story," which he never said. Liar, untrustworthy ... Hillaryied before Hillary.

Was wooden, formal, intellectual, talked slow, NERD.

[ificandream]

135. What are you reading now?

I'm curious what you turned to with some of the things you listed.

[GoreWon2000]

134. You couldn't be more wrong

Last edited Wed Apr 2, 2025, 01:20 PM - Edit history (1)

The NYT had a responsibility to ask W how it was possible for him to claim that he was compassionate despite the fact that he supported forcing women to give birth against their will. How is that possibly compassionate? It's not. How can W claim to support smaller government when W believed that the government should control women's bodies.? The NYT never questioned W on the hypocrisy of his claims. The NYT had a responsibility to do so because it's their job to do so. It's clear that you've never read the Daily Howler blog. The archives from 2000 provide a date specific, news outlet specific, reporter specific with specific quotes from news articles documenting in detail the media's war against Al Gore in 2000 where the media attacked Al Gore for everything. The media made no effort to hide its blatant bias in favor of W. The Daily Howler blog in specific, detailed fashion identifies and then shows the specific evidence that both the NYT and the Washington Post were the ring leaders of the media's war against Al Gore in 2000. I highly recommend that you read the Daily Howler blog archives from 2000 to see for yourself the detailed and very specific documentation of the media's pro W, anti Gore coverage of the 2000 Presidential campaign for yourself. You won't have such a rose colored glasses view of the NYT once you read the specific documentation of their behavior during the 2000 Presidential campaign and its aftermath.

[Bengus81]

108. "The Democratic brand is TOXIC" is a quote from him. Not taken out of context.

I guess I've been TOXIC since 1972 when I voted for McGovern the first time I could vote.

[GreenWave]

34. He met with poo poo king just before he changed course.

[LuvLoogie]

35. Yeah. Did he get Lindsay Grahamed?

God I hope he doesn't run for our nomination

[Butterflylady]

39. I guess he's joining Fetterman now,

So,so sad

[wryter2000]

41. He's toxic

I think I'll be voting for someone else in the primary.

[BlueTsunami2018]

42. People hate Democrats more than open fascists.

Which has been proven time and again.

I can’t really put my finger on why but people have been trained to hate Democrats. The brand is toxic even though Democrats have the policies that help more people, that protect their rights, that care about ethics as much as you can expect from politicians.

For some reason we can’t sell these basic things to people and we need to figure out why.

[efhmc]

55. Nope, what they hate are women.

[Tumbulu]

69. I believe that it is the relentless right wing hate media since the mid '80's

via am radio first, then Cable TV, now 80% of the social media that young men are exposed to is hard right hate aimed straight at Democrats and Liberals.

The hate media has won- and the Democratic Party and liberals have ignored this impact since it began.i have never understood why it was ignored, it would have been so easy in the ‘80’s to have stopped it. Even in the ‘90’s. Obama ignored it and here we are.

People need to wake up and deal with the fact that the culture war, for the time being, has been won by hate and Trump and the Tech bro’s are riding roughshod on us all.

[Bengus81]

111. Harris lost by 2M votes out of 152 MILLION cast. The Dem brand is not toxic

Nor did Trump win by some fucking landslide like him and his MAGA morons love to claim. Yeah Trump won on LIES 24/7 that cultists believed. NOW look at them at town halls.

Hey Gavin....who's brand is now TOXIC??

[wolfie001]

43. I read a title from a post that said he found common ground with Charlie Kirk....

....who's def a nazi and a homophobic racist. I was so disgusted I didn't give it a click and it certainly didn't deserve another pair of eyes to go read it. I guess he may share some of those repulsive thoughts that are in CK's brain? *Shudders*

[Prairie Gates]

44. Gleeful

Gross

[Ray Bruns]

46. FIFY

“He should have criticized Republicans for being judgmental, staying in an echo chamber and resorting to “cancel culture” to ostracize people whose views they find abhorrent”

[snot]

48. I hate to say it, but I can't argue with the general conclusion.

I'm sure we all support DEI et al.; but the Dem party has for decades sorely neglected the kinds of defense of and support for workers and the poor that they used to stand for; and most people vote their pocket books above all. Too often, Dem leaders didn't even try to make the case for things like strengthening labor, a public option, etc. – or mostly only did so, it seems, when they were in the minority and safe from having to actually deliver any results.

Sooner or later, a demagogue like Trump was bound to realize that by mouthing Bernie Sanders-type concern for the 99%, he could beat the Dems at what used to be their own game.

[Ritabert]

49. Democrats are only mad at the party for not fighting back

Ask us what we think of the spineless Republican party.

[GoreWon2000]

71. Exactly

Newsome is showing that he's badly out of touch with the grassroots too.

[BlueKota]

126. This.

I think people are tired of fund raising emails like the one I got from Gillibrand saying she would do everything she could to fight tsf right after she sold out by voting for his budget.

That's not fighting Kirsten it's called capitulating. If she doesn't have the courage to do what needs to be done she needs to step aside for another New York Democrat who does to take her seat.

Too bad Newsome went to the dark cowardly side as well.

[DownriverDem]

51. Not to me

I don't get this line of thought at all. Aren't folks paying attention to trump/Vance/musk? They are the ones destroying our country. The MAGAs in the House and Senate are doing their part too. The Dems and left leaning groups have filed over 100 lawsuits. The Dems are holding town halls in red states and districts so repubs can vent their anger about trump/musk. It's up to us voters to vote the bastards out for the 2026 Midterms. Blaming the Dems is totally wrong when the repubs control it all.

[Irish_Dem]

52. I wonder what it costs to buy a US governor?

[True Dough]

53. I want Pete Buttigieg as the future leader of the Dems

And a lot of people would counter with Gavin Newsom as the better candidate. Well, that's one less obstacle for Pete now!

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

118. Pete over Newsom is a no brainer!!

[Paladin]

54. Glad to see that DU administrators seem to be loosening up on Newsom critiques.

I got a post removal and a warning the other day for comments I made about Newsom---and I see stronger criticism of him on this thread. That's all I'll say for now---don't want to risk getting into trouble again...

[CountAllVotes]

56. It costs way too much to live in Calif.

Newsom isn't doing a whole lot to help.

When I read about people with a 1500 sq. ft. home paying $800.00+ a month for their PG&E bills I have to wonder what he is doing to prevent our bills from going up 7X in the last year.

[Polybius]

59. Depends how you say it

Constructive criticism is always welcome and allowed.

[PCB66]

57. He is Moving to the Right

because he thinks that will get more support when he runs for President in 2028.

Shame on him! He should stick to his convictions. Nobody that he is trying to win with the shift to the Right will vote for him anyhow.

[LudwigPastorius]

80. I believe the coined term is "triangulation".

...and, nobody wants that. We want a Democrat who is not afraid to be a Democrat.

[SpankMe]

60. I'd like some specific examples of this "talking down to" and judgementalism that isn't equally egregious on the right

Republicans aren't talking down to us liberals or "...ostraciz[ing] people whose views they find abhorrent..."? Conservatives aren't engaging in cancel culture? Left wing echo chamber, really? Is he aware of the right-wing echo chamber that is the fabric of all social media?

This sounds like the "when they go low, we go high" rubric, which is essentially bringing a knife to a gun fight. This is symptomatic of "no spine" and has been a failure for Democrats.

[Pisces]

61. Maybe we should be polling college students and high school students. This will tell you what the mood

Is amongst the youth. We do not have our finger on the pulse. We are living in our own bubble.
I think Gavin needs to do whatever it takes to win back voters to the Democratic Party. He needs to win over independents and the voters that recently left our party.

I will vote for whoever the Democrats put up as a candidate. What is going on right now is terrifying

[IbogaProject]

62. The Newsome Brand is becoming toxic

He is toast,he attended a party while enforcing a very strict lock down on commoners. Frankly the lock down of outdoor gatherings was over reach in warm California as well intentioned as it may have been.

[travelingthrulife]

120. No, it wasn't. Don't think like a Republican.

It was a pandemic.

[Phoenix61]

63. And I thought him playing patty cake with Kirk was disgusting.

This is even worse. IMHO, he’s lining up to be the sane Repuke.

[Exp]

65. Huh, what? Dems just need better MEMES and EMOJIS ! nt

[Rebl2]

66. I would

never vote for him.

[ananda]

68. What a pathetic sob he turned out to be.

Both he and Fetterman have really surprised me.

[Wild blueberry]

70. Guy who married Guilfolye says what?

Look to thyself before you going spouting "toxic", pal.

[cstanleytech]

73. Why post something like this? It does not help Democrats at all and it just feeds the trolls that hate them.

[Polybius]

74. Excuse me?

It's in the news, isn't it? You'd prefer not to know what he saying? Save your anger for Gavin, not for me.

[cstanleytech]

95. I'm confused, not angry. There is a difference in case you were unaware.

[Polybius]

96. Both aren't good reasons to be against the posting

There's nothing to be confused about. It's a news story. It gets posted.

[ificandream]

77. I get your concern but this needs to be discussed

The fact that people are so quickly criticizing him needs to be explained. I don’t agree with what he said, but his record being such a strong Democrat does not mean he is suddenly turned the tables. And I think people have to realize that. Unfortunately, some people are taking it strictly from the quotes. I don’t think that’s a good thing to do in this case. We need the correct explanation, not a quick one.

[LudwigPastorius]

78. "He criticized Democrats for...resorting to 'cancel culture' to ostracize people whose views they find abhorrent."

You see, if enough Jews had just invited a Nazi over for ein Bier,...to find common ground...that whole genocide thing probably wouldn't have happened!

Fascists damn well need to be ostracized.

[Polybius]

91. Cancel culture was just a 2020-2021 bizarre faze, and the left has abandoned it

I guarantee that if Aunt Jemima, Land of Lakes, Eskimo Pies, and the Cleveland Indians made it to 2022, they would survive forever.

[Oneironaut]

97. I don't think Cancel Culture was ever real tbh.

What we saw / are still seeing, imo, is the bland, sterile corporatization of everything, to the point that any form of unique expression or anything possibly deemed offensive (by corporate HR standards, but, in media and social media instead) was purged.

Color is disappearing from everything. Brand uniqueness is disappearing. Small businesses, creativity, and free expression are disappearing, in favor of a corporate-approved gray hellscape. All buildings are one of four colors, generally, or, are brutalist and look like prisons. Corporate logos are becoming mere black text against a white background, or, at least favor extreme minimalism.

I think this is a phase, or, I hope. It’s obnoxious and depressing.

[tulipsandroses]

87. All this says to me is Newsom is a selfish asshole

Seems to me that he is more concerned about setting himself up as the next Dem presidential nominee more than being a fighter. trump is actually giving democrats a gift with his insanity.
What is necessary now and moving forward is someone to connect the dots and tap into the real fear and anger people are feeling.

How the eff can you be talking about “cancel culture” when people are being disappeared? When blatant racism is on display? When people literally are scrubbing words from Gov websites and literature to erase women and minorities?

[betsuni]

92. Same as Bernie Sanders saying candidates should run as Independents but for different reasons.

Sanders thinks Democrats are same as Republicans (corrupt, controlled by billionaires and oligarchs, ignore the working class) so the Democratic Party should be abandoned while Newsom thinks Democrats are too judgmental, cancel culture is bad, and since Republicans won we should try to find some common ground and not just yell at them.

Newsom isn't saying anything new and he's certainly not telling people the party is an immoral, corrupt enemy that should be abandoned.

[Bread and Circuses]

94. I've supported Newsom ....

And voted for Gavin, although I never liked him.

It seems my radar was right.

He’s a cut loose and run , guy.

Guess what? He’s not going to get Dems to volunteer or donate for him after this bizarre attempt to make a name for himself.

He’s sliced his own throat,

[andym]

98. Republicans are good at finding the most unpopular policies supported by some Democrats and then painting them as key

policies, at the heart of what Democrats are trying to accomplish. It's very nasty but effective politics. That's how they managed to win over so many folks who would otherwise be Democrats. They then use these wedge issues to create extreme policies of their own to counter them. DeSantis is the master of this.

[Bengus81]

100. Glad I learned way,way early that this asshat is NO Democrat. But now that the cat is

out of the bag Newsom your free to fill your Podcasts with MAGA Mike,MTG,Tuberville and dozens of other Republican fascists.

You blew your shot faster than DeSantis................

[AntiFascist]

101. What has become toxic...

is the unwillingness to fight and to just stand back while all this is happening, hoping that the tide will turn by the time of the midterms. Trying to compromise with MAGA is not a winning strategy as Trump's base is beginning to realize that they've made a serious mistake. This is what polls are showing, and Newsom may find out the hard way as he preps for a presidential run.

[Torchlight]

104. Sounds serious

I guess

[struggle4progress]

105. Life in la la land

[Vinca]

107. Why do I bet he runs third party and gets the Republican installed again the next time?

I thought he was a real contender as a Democratic nominee even though he would have had the "do as I say, not as I do" Covid outing to deal with. Given the extremely close margin between Harris and Trump, one who ran 3 months and one who has been running since 2015, I would hardly call the Democratic Party toxic. Had RFK Jr. not instructed his loony followers to vote for Trump, Harris would be POTUS.

[Bengus81]

109. I doubt he'd play that second fiddle role. He wants the top slot in a party that could win

It's not going to be with Dems,so he'll run as a Republican.

[Keepthesoulalive]

110. I think his next move

Will be to tell us to stop being mean to Eloon because we need to win over the muskateers.
I think he’s showing us who he is. Imagine the folks he would have in his administration.

[cadoman]

116. I really wonder if his next move is even related to Democratic politics

These are not the comments you make if you want to win a Democratic primary, at least as far as the party is currently comprised.

[JustAnotherGen]

113. I just can't with him

Feel bad for California Democrats who voted for him in good faith.

[andym]

114. Senator Murphy wrote something similar in the Atlantic

We Are Sleepwalking Into Autocracy
Senator Chris Murphy, of Connecticut, describes how free and fair elections might end in America as soon as 2026.
By David Remnick
March 30, 2025

https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/the-new-yorker-radio-hour/senator-chris-murphy-this-is-how-democracy-dies-everybody-just-gets-scared

Highlighting from the article::

"I think we’re a pretty broken brand right now, and some of the people on the left don’t want to go through that hard rewrite of what the Democratic Party stands for.

What’s at the core of the brokenness, if we can be specific?

Well, we have become the status-quo party, and so we have reverted to defending democracy instead of explaining how we are going to break it down and reform it. We have not been a pugilistically populist party, where we name the people who have power and we build very easy-to-understand solutions about how to transfer power to people who don’t have it. And then we’re a pretty judgmental party, filled with a dozen litmus tests. We don’t let you in unless you agree with us on everything, kind of—from gender rights to reproductive rights to gun control to climate.

We’ve got to be a party that invites people in as long as they agree with us on the basic economic message, and build our party with a little bit more acceptance of people who have diverging views on social and cultural issues."

This article has far more than this critique by Sen Murphy. Take a look at the ongoing discussion here:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220191102

[Sympthsical]

119. It's like this thread aspired to prove his point

[Skittles]

136. no, not really

Newsome has been a huge disappointment lately - he's not inspiring anyone.