SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California Gov. Gavin Newsom called for an overhaul of Democrats’ political strategy on Saturday, saying the party is “being crushed” by Republicans in part because they are too timid, often forced to play defense while Republicans “dominate” with illusion .”
Speaking at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas — the territory of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, one of Newsom’s main political foils — Newsom was careful to praise current party leaders like President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
But he said mantras that might have worked for the party in the past — like Michele Obama’s famous quip “when they go low, we go high,” — simply don’t work today because “that’s not the moment we’re living in right now.”
“These guys are ruthless on the other side,” Newsom said. “Where are we? Where are we organizing, from the bottom up, a compelling alternative narrative? Where are we breaking ground every single day? They’re winning right now.”
Newsom said that’s why he — even though he’s running for re-election as governor of California — has spent some of the millions of dollars in his campaign account on television ads in Florida urging people to move to California, newspaper ads in Texas denouncing the state’s gun laws, and putting up billboards in seven states urging women to come to California if they need an abortion.
“There is nothing worse than someone pointing fingers. What are you going to do about it?” Newsom said. “The reason we’re doing these ads is because … The Democratic Party needs to do more of it.”
Of course, the main reason Newsom can do these things is because he faces little pressure at home. Newsom is likely to cruise to a second term as California governor in November, facing a little-known and underfunded Republican challenger a year after defeating a recall effort.
Newsom’s actions have fueled speculation that he might run for president, an idea he has repeatedly denied — and will do so again Saturday in Texas. Asked if he was considering running for president in 2024 or 2028, Newsom said, “No, that’s not happening.”
“I can’t say it enough,” he said. “I never trust politicians, so I understand why you keep asking.”
Newsom said President Joe Biden’s first two years in office have been “a master class … on substance and policy.” But he later said that good governance alone is not enough to win elections — adding that “otherwise Biden would be at 75% approval.” In reality, about 53% of American adults disapprove of Biden, according to the latest poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
The problem for Democrats, Newsom said, is that they “fall so easily in love” with “the guy or girl on the white horse who’s going to save the day.”
“We missed a more important paradigm that leadership is not defined by that person in formal authority, it’s defined by people in moral authority every single day,” he said.
Newsom’s aggressiveness could end up helping Abbott, who is locked in a more competitive race with former congressman Beto O’Rourke. Kenneth Grasso, a professor of political science at Texas State University, said there has been concern among some in the Republican Party that Abbott is “not conservative enough.” Newsom’s attacks on Abbott “only help him with these people,” Grasso said.
“If you emphasize that they are far-right, call them extremists, use that kind of language, all you’re going to do is increase their popularity in their own base,” he said.
Despite this risk, Texas Democrats seem to welcome Newsom’s attention.
“I like this guy,” Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said of Newsom. “I like the way he shows the contrast between what you do in California and the narrow-minded, extremist positions that arise here in the state of Texas.”
The Republican Party of Texas did not respond to an email seeking comment.