During his "My Take," Thursday, "Varney & Co." host Stuart Varney discussed Gov. Gavin Newsom's recent trips to Israel and China, arguing the California lawmaker is setting himself up to replace Biden as the Democrats' 2024 presidential candidate.
: The next presidential election is one year away.
It sure looks like California Governor Gavin Newsom wants to be the Democratic candidate.
Yes, Joe Biden is currently the official candidate, but Newsom is busy making himself the leading alternative.
President Joe Biden and Gavin Newsom
I wonder what Biden thinks about that.
The governor has been in China, and he's not just meeting low-level greeters.
No, he went up to the top, walking down the red carpet to be received by a smiling Xi Jinping.
What a combo. An uber-liberal climate guy cozies up to a communist dictator whose country spews out more carbon than anyone else.
Chaotic, crime-ridden California, meets the control freaks of Beijing.
The only message Newsom is sending is this: "I'm the next President of the United States, so I'm addressing the great issues of the day with the world's top leaders."
President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. (Getty Images)
He was in Israel before China. Again, I have to ask, did Biden or Kamala Harris approve this visit?
The governor is traveling around the world, but he can't shake off his own state's many failures.
Surely voters don't want the rest of the country to be like California.
Newsom knows that, but the China trip sends a message to Biden: time to move aside.
It also sends a message to Xi Jinping: "I'm the guy you'll soon be dealing with and, surely, you'd prefer me to Trump."
"By the way, I won't go anywhere near Taiwan."
The slightest mental or physical difficulty Joe Biden shows and there will be Gavin Newsom ready and eager to save the party and the country.
He's running.