NEED TO TALK

Newsom Defends New MAGA Friends After Dem Attacks

The California governor also said he thinks the Democratic Party needs an identity.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom defended sitting down with right-wing commentators Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk, saying criticism he has received from the left over it is a sign that Democrats aren’t—yet should be—willing to engage with opposing voices.

Speaking to The Hill, Newsom, who had Bannon and Kirk as guests on his “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast last month, responded to those who took issue with the chats.

“The reaction when I had Charlie Kirk and Bannon on was exactly to me Exhibit A of what I feel is wrong right now with my party: an unwillingness to even engage in platform, to listen,” Newsom said.

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Democrats, he added, “wanted it to be a debate, take the guy down as opposed to these two voices had a disproportionate impact on the voice you’re hearing every single day, in the megaphone in 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.”

“So maybe we should pay attention and at least express a desire to absorb and learn from what they’re doing and how successful they’ve been,” he suggested.

Critics of Newsom’s decision included Republican former congressman Adam Kinzinger, who accused the potential presidential candidate—who is term-limited and cannot run for reelection in 2026—of pandering to the right in order to “build a career.”

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Kentucky’s Democratic Governor Andy Beshear, said that while Newsom talking to differing voices “is great,” Bannon “espouses hatred and anger, and even at some points violence, and I don’t think we should give him oxygen on any platform, ever, anywhere.”

Podcast host Kara Swisher, meanwhile, faulted Newsom for being “too chummy” with the former Trump White House adviser, and not pushing back forcefully against false claims.

Newsom acknowledged these comments to The Hill, saying the response to his podcast “has been a little more bumpy than I even anticipated.”

As for the fallout from last year’s presidential election, Newsom said the Democratic Party still needed to conduct a “forensic” analysis of its loss.

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“I don’t think it, I know it. I mean, to the extent that I’m marginally part of this party, I represent the state larger than 21 state populations combined, and I can assure you there’s not been a party discussion that I’m aware of that has included the state of California,” he said.

“If you don’t learn the lessons of the past, you will repeat them,” he continued. “The fact that we’re not even stress testing what the hell just happened and we’re having an honest forensic conversation.”

When asked what he believed was Kamala Harris’ biggest mistake last year, Newsom declined to answer.

“Because I think I’d be unfair in answering that,” he said, noting the brevity of the campaign in light of former President Joe Biden dropping out.

“We’re all geniuses, not just experts in hindsight,” he said. “And I thought they ran a remarkably effective 107-day campaign, and all her strengths were there.”

Also during the interview, Newsom praised the rallies held by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders as “meet[ing] the moment,” but cautioned that “energy” alone won’t translate into a win at the ballot box.

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