California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom infamously dodged a recall election, dined out at a fancy restaurant during mass COVID-19 lockdowns, and pivoted from massive deadly wildfire mismanagement.
He is now running a podcast where he invites staunch conservatives for debate.
All of which has Democrats seeing red.
Steve Bannon, Charlie Kirk, and Newsmax host Michael Savage all sat down with Newsom recently, as the embattled Democrat governor tries to remake himself as a moderate Democrat all to grease the wheels for the 2028 Democrat presidential primary, experts say.
Even The Washington Post admits appealing to Trump's base – even if it is just giving them a platform for debate – is popular, noting talking with conservatives is good for the podcast business.
Newsom's podcast soared to the No. 3 Apple podcast spot after he disavowed men in women's sports in the Kirk interview. The podcast is now No. 2.
"I can't comprehend what he’s trying to accomplish if he's going to run for president as a Democrat," California Democrat strategist Steven Maviglio told the Post. "How do you win over Democratic voters by coddling the ultraright?"
It would be fine if it was "a thoughtful exchange of ideas and contrast of philosophies," Maviglio added, "but that's not what we’re getting.
"We’re getting somebody who's bragging about how close he is to the Republicans on issues. How that helps him in a Democratic primary is lost on me."
But conservatives know what it is: A way for him to look presidential after years of deep-seated resentment from the right, Savage told Newsmax earlier this week.
"I think he's playing the long game here," California Republican strategist Matt Klink told The Hill. "He realizes that he's got a lot of runway between now and the 2028 election."
Klink said Newsom's "positioning himself more as a moderate Democrat who is at least willing to listen to the thought leaders that are shaping the Republican narrative" might be "a start" to wiping away years of bad press.
Newsom admitted he wants to "change the conversation" by "talking directly with people I disagree with, people I look up to, and you — the listeners."
"He wants to be a middle-of-the-road Democrat," Klink said. "He tries to position himself more of a Bill Clinton-esque Democrat that can touch close enough to center, so that he can touch a little bit to the right and still move as far left as he needs to win a Democratic primary. He’s trying to try to navigate precarious waters."
Newsom's pitch comes as Democrats are in disarray, struggling to catch up with the fast-moving first 100 days of President Donald Trump's return to the White House. This week there was a quiet revolt against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for his refusal to shut down the government on Trump.
Critics have noted for weeks that Democrats are "leaderless" and "rudderless," as House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said at this week's weekly House GOP press briefing.
California Republican strategist Rob Stutzman said Newsom's anti-Trump stance needed a hard pivot, because Trump remains popular not only in his base but the often-forgotten middle.
"Newsom has a history of being a politician that will adapt to changing circumstances,” Stutzman told The Hill. "I think he's figured out the way forward for a politician like him, if he's going to run for president, is probably to start exploring, will anyone follow him into a lane that is more dismissive, particularly on culture, of where the Democrats have been for the past decade?"
Newsom clearly knows the Democrats' ways the past few cycles did not work.
"It's an opportunity to communicate with people directly," Newsom told reporters this week. "The world's changed. We need to change with it.
"We've got to do things differently, keep iterating."
Conservative critics note that Newsom has changed – from a failed blue state governor to a 2028 presidential primary hopeful – Savage told Newsmax.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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