Fox News sees the power of Gavin Newsom's trolling

[marmar]

Fox News sees the power of Gavin Newsom’s trolling
That’s why the network’s stars are fuming

By Sophia Tesfaye
Senior Writer
Published August 24, 2025 6:30AM (EDT)


(Salon) Gavin Newsom is winning. By any measure — the attention economy, donations or algorithmic reach — the Democratic California governor’s response to President Donald Trump’s Texas power grab is accomplishing its mission. Trump and his sycophants at Fox News are clearly triggered by the Democrat’s incessant trolling.

In 48 hours this week, Newsom raised $6.2 million from more than 200,000 donors. His retaliatory push for California to create five new Democratic seats in response to Texas Republicans gerrymandering their state to try and net five additional House seats in next year’s midterm elections — at Trump’s behest — overcame its first major hurdle on Thursday. California voters will be asked on Nov. 4 to simultaneously approve the new Democratic drawn congressional maps and support nationwide independent redistricting. A new statewide poll out this week found that 55% of voters support the initiative — as Newsom’s popularity is rising in the Golden State.

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Last week, the governor’s social media team launched a snippy troll campaign against the White House and its supporters in MAGA media, including Fox News’ Dana Perino and Tomi Lahren, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, mimicking Trump’s style of capital letters and nicknames. White House communications director Steven Cheung cried that Newsom is a “coward and Beta Cuck.” Fox News stars clutched their pearls over Newsom’s ribbing.

“You have to stop it with the Twitter thing,” Perino said on “The Five” this week. “He’s got a big job as governor of California, but if he wants an even bigger job, he has to be a little more serious.”

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It’s fascinating to see them all pretend not to get the joke so they don’t anger Trump. The president’s defenders have to frame Newsom’s mimicry as though he means to emulate Trump rather than mock him. But their over-the-top whining belies their true understanding. Newsom is throwing red meat to the resistance while baiting the right. He’s learned from Trump, as well as his years engaging with Fox News, that being an internet troll can consolidate media attention without falling into the “fact-check” trap that has beguiled Democrats for the entirety of the Trump era. And enraged Fox News hosts like Sean Hannity, who acknowledged that “maybe it wins you points with the looney radical base in your party,” and Greg Gutfeld, who spent the week trolling that Newsom’s antics are somehow doomed to fail, understand that’s why the trolling is funny. Newsom is like the court jester pointing out how stupidly the king is acting. The inability of Trumpists to see it makes it even funnier. .................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/08/24/fox-news-sees-the-power-of-gavin-newsoms-trolling/