Latest news with #ElectionRiggingResponseAct
Newsweek
an hour ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Gavin Newsom's Team Unveils New Nickname for JD Vance
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. After pivoting into a Donald Trump-style of social media posting to mock the U.S. president, California Governor Gavin Newsom's team has now introduced a new nickname for Vice President J.D. Vance, "Just Dance Vance." The governor's office was commenting on Vance's recent visit to Indianapolis where Republicans are under pressure from the Trump administration to redraw the state's electoral map ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The same move has recently been pushed by Texas Republicans in the Lone Star State, promising to give the GOP five additional seats next year. The controversial strategy is behind the recent fleeing of Texas Democrats from the state and sparked nationwide protests against a "Trump takeover" on Saturday. "NOT EVEN JD 'JUST DANCE' VANCE CAN SAVE TRUMP FROM THE DISASTROUS MAPS 'WAR' HE HAS STARTED," Newsom's office wrote on X on Saturday, mimicking Trump's habit to write in all-caps. Why It Matters The kind of trolling that Newsom is currently directing at Trump on social media is yet another step in the quickly escalating clash between the U.S. president and the California governor. Their relationship has deteriorated after Trump decided to send thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines to Los Angeles earlier this summer despite Newsom's objections. Main image, California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks about the 'Election Rigging Response Act' at a press conference at the Japanese American National Museum on August 14, 2025, in Los Angeles, California; Inset, Vice President JD... Main image, California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks about the 'Election Rigging Response Act' at a press conference at the Japanese American National Museum on August 14, 2025, in Los Angeles, California; Inset, Vice President JD Vance delivers a speech during a visit to RAF Fairford in England on August 13, 2025. More Getty Images The president justified the move as necessary to contain protests in the city against his administration's mass deportation efforts, but Newsom said it was only trying to fulfill "the deranged fantasy of a dictatorial president." The state of California has since sued the president for sending federal troops to Los Angeles without Newsom's permission. A trial was held last week and a decision in the case is looming. What To Know Giving Vance a nickname—"Just Dance Vance"—is just one of the many ways Newsom is imitating Trump's very recognizable social media posting style to mock the president. These include using derogatory nicknames for his political opponents, writing in all-caps and overtly and exaggeratedly praising himself for real or imaginary achievements. In Trump's social media world, the California governor is often referred to as "Newscum." In his mocking posts, Newsom has repeatedly referred to Trump as "tiny hands." This mockery has gone side by side with the California governor's fight against nationwide attempts to redistribute congressional boundaries ahead of the 2026 midterms—a strategy that is backed by Trump and his administration. Newsom has threatened to go ahead with his own plan to redraw California's electoral map should Texas and other Republican-led states reconfigure their state's congressional districts in their favor. The governor said that California will not redraw its electoral map if Republican-led states give up on the idea—if not, they can expect a tit-for-tat from the Golden State which would effectively neutralize their efforts. What People Are Saying Newsom's press office wrote on X: "NOT EVEN JD 'JUST DANCE' VANCE CAN SAVE TRUMP FROM THE DISASTROUS MAPS 'WAR' HE HAS STARTED. NOT EVEN HIS EYELINER LINES LOOK AS PRETTY AS CALIFORNIA 'MAP' LINES. HE WILL FAIL, AS HE ALWAYS DOES (SAD!) "AND I, THE PEACETIME GOVERNOR—OUR NATION'S FAVORITE—WILL SAVE AMERICA ONCE AGAIN. MANY ARE NOW CALLING ME GAVIN CHRISTOPHER 'COLUMBUS' NEWSOM (BECAUSE OF THE MAPS!). THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER." Questioned by a reporter about his trolling of the president in his recent social media posts, Newsom said on Thursday: "I'm just following his example. If you have issues with what I'm putting out, you sure as hell should have concerns with what he's putting out as president." Reporter: What's going on with those posts on X that are clearly trolling the president? Newsom: I hope it's a wake up call for the president. I'm just following his example. If you have issues with what I'm putting out, you sure as hell should have concerns with what he's… — Acyn (@Acyn) August 14, 2025 White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement: "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but Newscum's obsession is getting a little creepy at this point. Gavin will never be ready for primetime!" What Happens Next It is unclear how long Newsom and his team will continue to mock the president and his social media posting style, but the bitterness between the two is unlikely to dissipate. Newsom's time in office ends next year, and he is rumored to be contemplating a run for president.
Los Angeles Times
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
News Analysis: Newsom's decision to fight fire with fire could have profound political consequences
Deep in the badlands of defeat, Democrats have soul-searched about what went wrong last November, tinkered with a thousand-plus thinkpieces and desperately cast for a strategy to reboot their stalled-out party. Amid the noise, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has recently championed an unlikely game plan: Forget the high road, fight fire with fire and embrace the very tactics that virtue-minded Democrats have long decried. Could the dark art of political gerrymandering be the thing that saves democracy from Trump's increasingly authoritarian impulses? That's essentially the pitch Newsom is making to California voters with his audacious new special election campaign. As Texas Democrats dig in to block a Republican-led redistricting push and Trump muscles to consolidate power wherever he can, Newsom wants to redraw California's own congressional districts to favor Democrats. His goal: counter Trump's drive for more GOP House seats with a power play of his own. It's a boundary-pushing gamble that will undoubtedly supercharge Newsom's political star in the short-term. The long-game glory could be even grander, but only if he pulls it off. A ballot-box flop would be brutal for both Newsom and his party. The charismatic California governor is termed out of office in 2026 and has made no secret of his 2028 presidential ambitions. But the distinct scent of his home state will be hard to completely slough off in parts of the country where California is synonymous with loony lefties, business-killing regulation and an out-of-control homelessness crisis. To say nothing of Newsom's ill-fated dinner at an elite Napa restaurant in violation of COVID-19 protocols — a misstep that energized a failed recall attempt and still haunts the governor's national reputation. The redistricting gambit is the kind of big play that could redefine how voters across the country see Newsom. The strategy could be a boon for Newsom's 2028 ambitions during a moment when Democrats are hungry for leaders, said Democratic strategist Steven Maviglio. But it's also a massive roll of the dice for both Newsom and the state he leads. 'It's great politics for him if this passes,' Maviglio said. 'If it fails, he's dead in the water.' The path forward — which could determine control of Congress in 2026 — is hardly a straight shot. The 'Election Rigging Response Act,' as Newsom has named his ballot measure, would temporarily scrap the congressional districts enacted by the state's voter-approved independent redistricting commission. Under the proposal, Democrats could pick up five seats currently held by Republicans while bolstering vulnerable Democratic incumbent Reps. Adam Gray, Josh Harder, George Whitesides, Derek Tran and Dave Min, which would save the party millions of dollars in costly reelection fights. But first the Democratic-led state Legislature must vote to place the measure on the Nov. 4 ballot and then it must be approved by voters. If passed, the initiative would have a 'trigger,' meaning the redrawn map would not take effect unless Texas or another GOP-led state moved forward with its own gerrymandering effort. 'I think what Governor Newsom and other Democrats are doing here is exactly the right thing we need to do,' Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said Thursday. 'We're not bringing a pencil to a knife fight. We're going to bring a bazooka to a knife fight, right? This is not your grandfather's Democratic Party,' Martin said, adding that they shouldn't be the only ones playing by a set of rules that no longer exist. For Democrats like Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), who appeared alongside Newsom to kick off the effort, there is 'some heartbreak' to temporarily shelving their commitment to independent redistricting. But she and others were clear-eyed about the need to stop a president 'willing to rig the election midstream,' she said. Friedman said she was hearing overwhelmingly positive reactions to the proposal from all kinds of Democratic groups on the ground. 'The response that I get is, 'Finally, we're fighting. We have a way to fight back that's tangible,'' Friedman recounted. Still, despite the state's Democratic voter registration advantage, victory for the ballot measure will hardly be assured. California voters have twice rallied for independent redistricting at the ballot box in the last two decades and many may struggle to abandon those beliefs. A POLITICO-Citrin Center-Possibility Lab poll found that voters prefer keeping an independent panel in place to draw district lines by a nearly two-to-one margin, and that independent redistricting is broadly popular in the state. (Newsom's press office argued that the poll was poorly worded, since it asked about getting rid of the independent commission altogether and permanently returning line-drawing power to the legislators, rather than just temporarily scrapping their work for several cycles until the independent commission next draws new lines.) California voters should not expect to see a special election campaign focused on the minutia of reconfiguring the state's congressional districts, however. While many opponents will likely attack the change as undercutting the will of California voters, who overwhelmingly supported weeding politics out of the redistricting process, bank on Newsom casting the campaign as a referendum on Trump and his devious effort to keep Republicans in control of Congress. Newsom employed a similar strategy when he demolished the Republican-led recall campaign against him in 2021, which the governor portrayed as a 'life and death' battle against 'Trumpism' and far-right anti-vaccine and antiabortion activists. Among California's Democratic-heavy electorate, that message proved to be extremely effective. 'Wake up, America,' Newsom said Thursday at a Los Angeles rally launching the campaign for the redistricting measure. 'Wake up to what Donald Trump is doing. Wake up to his assault. Wake up to the assault on institutions and knowledge and history. Wake up to his war on science, public health, his war against the American people.' Kevin Liao, a Democratic strategist who has worked on national and statewide campaigns, said his D.C. and California-based political group chats had been blowing up in recent days with texts about the moment Newsom was creating for himself. Much of Liao's group chat fodder has involved the output of Newsom's digital team, which has elevated trolling to an art form on its official @GovPressOffice account on the social media site X. The missives have largely mimicked the president's own social media patois, with hyperbole, petty insults and a heavy reliance on the 'caps lock' key. 'DONALD IS FINISHED — HE IS NO LONGER 'HOT.' FIRST THE HANDS (SO TINY) AND NOW ME — GAVIN C. NEWSOM — HAVE TAKEN AWAY HIS 'STEP,' ' one of the posts read last week, dutifully reposted by the governor himself. Some messages have also ended with Newsom's initials (a riff on Trump's signature 'DJT' signoff) and sprinkled in key Trumpian callbacks, like the phrase 'Liberation Day,' or a doctored Time Magazine cover with Newsom's smiling mien. The account has garnered 150,000 new followers since the beginning of the month. Shortly after Trump took office in January, Newsom walked a fine line between criticizing the president and his policies and being more diplomatic, especially after the California wildfires — in hopes of appealing to any semblance of compassion and presidential responsibility Trump possessed. Newsom had spent the first months of the new administration trying to reshape the California-vs.-Trump narrative that dominated the president's first term and move away from his party's prior 'resistance' brand. Those conciliatory overtures coincided with Newsom's embrace of a more ecumenical posture, hosting MAGA leaders on his podcast and taking a position on transgender athletes' participation in women's sports that contradicted the Democratic orthodoxy. Newsom insisted that he engaged in those conversations to better understand political views that diverged from his own, especially after Trump's victory in November. However, there was the unmistakable whiff of an ambitious politician trying to broaden his national appeal by inching away from his reputation as a West Coast liberal. Newsom's reluctance to readopt the Trump resistance mantle ended after the president sent California National Guard troops into Los Angeles amid immigration sweeps and ensuing protests in June. Those actions revealed Trump's unchecked vindictiveness and abject lack of morals and honor, Newsom said. Of late, Newsom has defended the juvenile tone of his press aides' posts mocking Trump's own all-caps screeds, and questioned why critics would excoriate his parody and not the president's own unhinged social media utterances. 'If you've got issues with what I'm putting out, you sure as hell should have concerns about what he's putting out as president,' Newsom said last week. 'So to the extent it's gotten some attention, I'm pleased.' In an attention-deficit economy where standing out is half the battle, the posts sparkle with unapologetic swagger. And they make clear that Newsom is in on the joke. 'To a certain set of folks who operated under the old rules, this could be seen as, 'Wow, this is really outlandish.' But I think they are making the calculation that Democrats want folks that are going to play under this new set of rules that Trump has established,' Liao said. At a moment when the Democratic party is still occupied with post-defeat recriminations and what's-next vision boarding, Newsom has emerged from the bog with something resembling a plan. And he's betting the house on his deep-blue state's willingness to fight fire with fire. Times staff writers Seema Mehta and Laura Nelson contributed to this report.
Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
PARKER: Companies on the move to escape California blues
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks about the "Election Rigging Response Act" at a press conference at the Democracy Center, Japanese American National Museum on August 14, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. Newsom spoke about a possible California referendum on redistricting to counter the legislative effort to add five Republican House seats in the state of Texas. Photo by Mario Tama / Getty Images California Gov. Gavin Newsom is upset with Texas. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account There's a reason he should be upset. California companies are pulling up in droves and moving to the Lone Star State and elsewhere. But that isn't what's bothering him. Newsom cares about politics and power, not markets and business. He's upset that the Texas state legislature is moving to redistricting, which could add up to five Republican seats in 2026. So, Newsom wants to redistrict, which could add another five Democratic seats in California. California's congressional districts are already gerrymandered to death to favour Democrats — 17% of the State's 52 congressional seats are held by Republicans in a state in which Donald Trump garnered 38% of the popular vote in 2024. In ballot initiatives in 2008 and 2010, Californians amended the state constitution to establish an independent redistricting commission, with five representatives from each party and four unaffiliated, to take rote politics out of the process. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. But removing rote politics for Gavin Newsom is like asking the L.A. Dodgers to show up for a game without bats, balls and gloves. Newsom wants to circumvent the commission by putting new district maps for 2026 before voters in a special ballot initiative this November. It is too bad that Newsom's obsession is with accumulating power rather than improving his state. Just listen to Orange County resident and much-followed economist and blogger Scott Grannis. From Grannis' latest post, which he calls California Leavin': 'Between 2020 and 2025, approximately 500 companies have moved their headquarters out of California or shifted significant operations elsewhere, with a notable spike in relocations since 2019. From 2018 to 2021 alone, the Hoover Institution reported 352 companies relocating their headquarters out of the state.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Grannis continues: 'Government has become increasingly lazy and dysfunctional; the roads are a mess, traffic is the bane of everyday existence, taxes and regulations are oppressive, and modest cottages start at $1 million.' U-Haul annually reports its U-Haul Growth Index. This ranks the 50 states according to 'each state's net gain (or loss) of customers utilizing one-way U-Haul equipment in a calendar year.' Which state was first in one-way departures out of the state for the last five years? Yes, you're right. California Leavin'. And what state was number two in the nation in arrivals into the state in 2024? Yes, Texas, the Lone Star State. Texas has ranked first or second every year since 2016. According to of the top five cities in the U.S. with new corporate headquarters openings from 2018 to 2024, three are in Texas — Dallas, Austin and Houston. The other two are in Nashville and Phoenix. All five are in red states in 2024. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In the top five cities for corporate headquarters closures from 2018 to 2024, three of the five are in California. San Diego, Greater Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. The other two are Chicago and New York City. All five are in blue states in 2024. Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies documents which states had the largest migration gains from 2014 to 2024 and which states had the largest losses. Of the top 10 that gained over this period, seven of the 10 were red states in 2024. Of the top 10 losers over this period, seven of the 10 were blue states in 2024. Needless to say, Texas is in the top 10 gainers. It is a state that is booming because it provides a tax and regulatory environment conducive to those who want to work and grow. It makes all the sense in the world, with the huge influx of businesses and people, that the Texas population landscape has changed dramatically since the last census. There is a rationale for the redistricting initiative in Texas. But in California, Newsom just wants to institutionalize failure. Let's hope, in the interest of Californians, that he doesn't manage to get this misguided initiative on the ballot. And if he does, that it fails. Star Parker is founder of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education Crime Toronto & GTA Toronto Blue Jays Sunshine Girls Toronto Blue Jays
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gavin Newsom Just Revealed Why He's Tweeting Exactly Like Trump, And The Reason Is Actually Kind Of Brilliant
Gavin Newsom has been tweeting like Donald Trump for the past few days. From his use of CAPS LOCK and multiple exclamation points... Related: ... to his "THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER." He really nailed it. Oh, and he also mocked Trump's whole king schtick. Related: On Thursday, Newsom announced the "Election Rigging Response Act." The maps haven't been released yet, but it appears the bill will be up for a public vote on November 4. GavinNewsom/Twitter: @GavinNewsom Related: Sooo, let's go back to those tweets. After his press conference a reporter asked him, "What's going on with those posts on X that are clearly trolling the president?" Acyn/Twitter: @Acyn "I hope it's a wake-up call for the President of the United States. I'm sort of following his example. If you've got issues with what I'm putting out, you sure as hell should have concerns about what he's putting out as President," he said. "To the extent, it's got some attention. I'm pleased. I think the deeper question is how have we allowed the normalization of his tweets through social posts over the course of the last many years to go without similar scrutiny and notice." Related: People in the replies are like, "Yep." As this person said, "He's 100% correct. If you're gonna come after him, go after the same person who posts the same way." Also in Internet Finds: Also in Internet Finds: Also in Internet Finds:
The Hill
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Newsom promises to ‘fight fire with fire,' escalates anti-democratic war
California Gov. Gavin Newsom made a pretty major announcement yesterday, taking his latest stance to fight back against Republicans' mid-decade redistricting plans in Texas and beyond. This move comes as Republicans in Texas — with President Donald Trump's backing — are pursuing a new congressional map that could give them as many as five more House seats. And Newsom's response? He's leaning into some signature California swag: 'I know they say 'Don't mess with Texas.' Well, don't mess with the great Golden State.' He's calling it the 'Election Rigging Response Act,' a proposal that would let California Democrats bypass the state's independent redistricting commission and redraw maps more favorable to their own party. Newsom says it's a direct response to Republican moves. 'I'm grateful to all of the remarkable leaders that have stepped up this unifying effort, and we'll be asking for the people on the November 4th special election, coinciding with a lot of local municipal elections, to provide a temporary pathway for congressional maps. We will affirm our commitment to the state independent redistricting after the 2030 census, but we're asking the voters for their consent to do midterm redistricting.' Here's my take: I am not a fan of gerrymandering from either side. It's anti-democratic, plain and simple. If both red states and blue states start stealing congressional seats through partisan map-making, we all lose. In an ideal world, Texas would wait until the next census and adopt independent redistricting committees — and California would resist the temptation to 'fight fire with fire.' Because in this case, the 'fire' is actually a direct hit to one of democracy's core values: voting equality. And if you burn that down, you're doing the work of democracy's enemies for them. When both political parties start disenfranchising voters to push their policies without actually earning our votes, the only winners are the people rich enough to buy politicians' loyalty. But while I think Newsom's redistricting plan is wrong, I have to admit — the man is on a roll. He's trolling Trump like it's his new hobby, even calling him 'DONALD 'TACO' TRUMP' in all caps on X. The nickname caught fire a few months ago, with Jeanine Pirro even chuckling on air when a reporter brought it up to the former president. Take a look — I guess I'm not the only one who thinks it's funny! At the end of the day, my hope is simple: Republicans stick with the current Texas maps, Democrats back off the retaliation, and Gov. Newsom keeps going just enough to keep us all entertained — because clearly, he's found his spotlight.
