Indiana Gov. Mike Braun slammed California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday, telling Newsmax’s “National Report” that Newsom’s take on the Texas redistricting battle signals national political ambition.
Braun argued that Newsom’s rhetoric is less about policy and more about positioning himself for a future federal role.
“So, when he's doing that, he's obviously grandstanding for something larger,” he said, adding, “And you talk about a guy that we would never want running our country.”
Braun’s criticism followed Newsom’s remarks on X earlier this week praising a Texas appellate court ruling that found the state’s newly redrawn congressional maps favoring Republicans were an illegal attempt at race-based gerrymandering that would harm Black and Hispanic residents.
“[President] Donald Trump and [Texas Gov.] Greg Abbott played with fire, got burned — and democracy won,” Newsom wrote Tuesday. “This ruling is a win for Texas and for every American who fights for free and fair elections.”
The Indiana Republican said Newsom’s posture revealed how closely California’s political machinery mirrors Washington’s.
“The federal government and California are basically one and the same in how they do it and he's defending a gerrymandered electoral landscape that he and others in his party have orchestrated over two decades,” Braun argued. “Very hypocritical.”
Braun framed Republican-led efforts in Texas as an attempt to correct long-standing distortions in congressional representation.
“This is trying to level the playing field, and not to mention the current way you count congressional districts allows illegal immigrants — 20 to 30 million — to play into it,” he said.
He pointed to population distribution as another imbalance driving the debate.
“Each district has 750,000 people, housed mostly in California, Illinois, New York. Hypocritical,” Braun added.
Braun said his Democrat counterpart’s national media presence and rapid responses to red-state policies suggest a carefully crafted strategy geared toward raising his profile beyond California.
“He's grandstanding,” Braun said of Newsom. “We would never want him to get close to federal politics. We don't need more of California in D.C. — it's bad enough.”
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