After violent riots broke out across his state, California Governor Gavin Newsom actually took the side of the lawbreakers and now sues the federal government because President Trump insists on protecting the innocent citizens of California.
Tragically, Gavin Newsom’s dereliction of duty is steadily transforming California—once a golden land of wonder—into a “Paradise Lost.”
Prior to this period of decline and decay, California long occupied a hallowed place in our national culture. Ever since Americans flocked there during the Gold Rush days, California seemed to embody a truly American spirit of opportunity, youthful vitality, and creativity…all in a sun-kissed land of natural splendor, unmatched in the world.
From Horace Greeley’s exhortation to “go west, young man” to the post-WWII car and beach culture of the 1950s, California captured Americans’ imaginations.
But now, a very different, dark reality emerges. California devolves into a wicked warning—a harsh siren alarm for the rest of the nation to reverse course and flee from California’s chaos.
No one is more responsible for this descent into “paradise lost” than Governor Gavin Newsom.
Despite his miserable record, Newsom is clearly eyeing a presidential run—likely in 2028. This man is pure ambition, a Machiavellian figure who lacks self-awareness and seems utterly incapable of any introspection.
As such, he currently embarks on a public relations campaign to cross-dress as a moderate to appeal to the masses of Americans who do not want the California model.
But Newsom’s actual governing record remains his inescapable anchor. We know who you are, Gavin, because of your record! No matter how slick your attempts to sound reasonable in conversations with leaders on the Right, the data and evidence of Newsom’s California reveal nothing but policy failures and personal dishonesty for Gavin.
Two key areas best reflect Newsom’s dismal record:
The Economy
California is the poorest state in America. That fact understandably shocks a lot of people, who focus on the incredible wealth concentrated along its gleaming coast. But once the Census Bureau statistics adjust for the costs of living, which makes perfect sense, then California has the highest poverty rate in America. Far from the swanky hills of Bel Air, most Californians live in economic misery, enduring awful commutes to small homes where they struggle to pay exorbitant expenses for basics like home utilities and gasoline.
But the quality-of-life issues cut even deeper, thanks to Newsom’s leftist extremism. For example, under Newsom’s rule, California has been a paradise for drug dealers and shoplifters—and a nightmare for residents crushed by a horrific crime crisis.
Moreover, Newsom’s state was ranked among the most restrictive during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also lost three Supreme Court cases over his draconian lockdown war against churches and religious freedom.
Cultural Radicalism
An unrepentant public liar, Newsom prohibited 2020 gatherings during COVID, even in homes, but then attended a large, lavish private dinner with lobbyists at the elite French Laundry restaurant in Napa. In keeping with this practice of serial hypocrisy, Newsom regularly portrays himself as a Catholic. But Newsom seems to seek only the political advantages of that designation, without even a semblance of adherence to actual Church beliefs.
A new report from CatholicVote carefully details the full hypocrisy of Newsom, providing a full vetting of his anti-family repression in California.
For example, his pro-abortion extremism extends way beyond the Bill Clinton-era explanation of keeping abortion “safe, legal, and rare.” Instead, Newsom actually promotes California’s abortion-until-birth allowances in advertisements. These billboard ads even included a Biblical quote from Jesus: “Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no greater commandment than these—Mark 12:31.” That sacrilege was deemed “unconscionable” by the California Catholic Conference and a “reprehensible act of gross blasphemy” by a leading Protestant pastor.
Similarly, Newsom mandates an aggressive indoctrination program in the nation’s largest public school system, starting in primary grades. Instead of protecting the innocence of children too young for any sex curriculum, Newsom compels teachers and parents to subject children to lurid pro-homosexuality lessons. Newsom so insists on this required sexualization of children that he instituted harsh penalties for schools that fail to promote his obscene pro-LGBTQ content to children.
Despite this record of failures and lies, Newsom is mostly correct on one crucial point. As San Francisco mayor, he remarked that “as California goes, so goes the rest of the nation. It’s inevitable.” Of course, for most of the last century and a half, the rest of America has indeed followed the lead of trendsetting California. But thankfully, continuing that practice now? It’s not “inevitable.”
Instead, America forges a different, brighter path—one leading to a prosperous economy, strong families, and vibrant communities that bind together through patriotism and fervent religious faith. That better path also means a wholesale repudiation of lying Gavin Newsom.
Steve Cortes is president of the League of American Workers, a populist right pro-laborer advocacy group, and senior political advisor to Catholic Vote.
He is a former senior advisor to President Trump and JD Vance, plus a former commentator for Fox News and CNN.