Newsom needs to stop kidding around. He's running for president

Los Angeles Times

2 days ago

SACRAMENTO — No outsider politicians venture into sultry South Carolina in July unless they are running for president.
Certainly not a West Coast politician. Especially a California governor who lives in delightful Marin County near wonderful cool beaches. A governor who could easily vacation at spectacular Big Sur or hike a wilderness trail into the majestic Sierra.
We can assume Gov. Gavin Newsom didn't choose South Carolina for its nightly light show of amazing fireflies or symphony of crickets. He was attracted to something so alluring that he was willing to brave skin-eating chiggers and oppressive humidity.
The lure, of course, was that South Carolina will hold one of the earliest — perhaps the first — Democratic presidential primaries in 2028. The precise calendar for contests hasn't been set. But Newsom knows this: South Carolina propelled Joe Biden to the party's nomination in 2020. And it provided a huge boost for Barack Obama in 2008.
'What South Carolinians saw this week as … Newsom made a two-day swing through the state was more than a highly visible candidate who probably will run for president in 2028,' wrote Andy Brack, editor, publisher and columnist at the Statehouse Report and Charleston City Paper.
'They saw a guy sweating through a white shirt in the South Carolina heat who was having fun. Yep, he seemed to enjoy engaging with voters in rural places too often forgotten by many candidates.'
Yes, Newsom, 57, loves campaigning on the stump — a whole lot more than he does toiling in the nitty-gritty of governing.
I'd only bicker with Brack's word 'probably' when characterizing Newsom's White House bid. We're talking semantics.
California's termed-out governor actually has been running for months. And he'll run as far as he can, slowly for a while and try to pick up speed down the road.
That's conventional politics. Most candidates — especially office holders — initially claim that running for president is 'the furthest thing' from their mind, then ultimately declare their candidacy with all the hoopla of a carnival barker.
OK, I admit to having been wrong about the governor in the past. I should have known better. I took him at his word. He persistently denied any interest in the presidency. 'Subzero,' he asserted. But to be fair, he and reporters previously were centered on the 2024 race and the distant 2028 contest got short shrift.
I figured Newsom mostly was running for a slot on the 'A' list of national political leaders. He wanted to be mentioned among the roster of top-tier potential presidents. He clearly savors the national attention.
But I've also always wondered whether Newsom might be leery of running for president because of his lifelong struggle with dyslexia. He could view the task with some trepidation. The governor has acknowledged having difficulty reading, especially speeches off teleprompters.
That said, he has adapted and is an articulate, passionate off-the-cuff speaker with a mind full of well-organized data. He excels on the stump — especially when he restrains a tendency to be long-winded and repetitive.
Newsom is finally starting to acknowledge the White House glimmer in his eye.
'I'm not thinking about running, but it's a path that I could see unfold,' he told the Wall Street Journal last month.
More recently, in a lengthy interview with conservative podcaster Shawn Ryan, Newsom said: 'I'll tell you, the more Trump keeps doing what he does, the more compelled I am to think about it.'
Newsom's proclaimed hook for traveling to South Carolina was to 'sound the alarm' about President Trump's brutish policies and to light a fire under Democratic voters to help the party win back the U.S. House next year.
He's again trying to establish himself as a leader of the anti-Trump resistance after several months of playing nice to the president in a losing effort to keep federal funds flowing to California.
But it's practically inevitable that a California governor will be lured into running for president. Governors have egos and ears. They constantly hear allies and advisors telling them they could become the leader of the free world.
And, after all, this is the nation's most populous state, with by far the largest bloc of delegates to the Democratic National Convention — 20% of those needed to win the nomination.
But there's a flip side to this California benefit. There's a California burden. In much of the country, we're seen as a socialist horror with dreadful liberal policies that should never be emulated nationally.
'People who live in other states just don't like us, whether they're Democrats or Republicans,' says Democratic strategist Darry Sragow. 'A Democrat from California is going to have an uphill fight no matter who they are. That's just a reality.
'The odds [for Newsom] are pretty long, although he has a shot because the field is totally open.'
But Democratic strategist Bill Carrick — a South Carolina native — says the California burden 'is exaggerated. That's just the Republican stereotype of California. Who cares?
'If Newsom runs, he'll be competitive. He's smart. Good charisma. South Carolina was a good trip for him.'
Former Democratic consultant Bob Shrum, director of the Center for the Political Future at USC, says: 'Too many people write Newsom off. He has a realistic chance.
'He's very good at pushing off against Trump. It all depends on whether he goes into the election with a message about the future. The message has to center around the economy. The two times Trump was elected he won the message war.'
Can Newsom win the nomination? Maybe. The presidency? Probably not.
But there's no certainty about anything in an antsy country that swings from twice electing Barack Obama to twice anointing Donald Trump. Newsom is smart to roll the dice.
The must-read: Forget the high road: Newsom takes the fight to Trump and his allies The TK: Will she or won't she? The California governor's race waits on Kamala Harris The L.A. Times Special: The forgotten godfather of Trump's scorched earth immigration campaign
Until next week,George Skelton
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