California Governor Gavin Newsom and his wife Jennifer are making the rounds on news channels as they give exclusive interviews to various newspapers and magazines – fueling speculation that the Democrat may challenge President Joe Biden in 2024.
In recent weeks, the California governor, 55, has been embroiled in a battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a GOP presidential candidate who was seen as former President Donald Trump’s biggest challenger, over his decision to move immigrants to the Golden State — even the potential threat. Complaints against DeSantis.
He also conducted a rare sit-down interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, in which he declined to answer whether he plans to run for president.
And his wife Jennifer recently spoke about the ‘traumas’ that shaped his life.
All of this comes amid concerns among the Democratic Party about Biden’s age and low popularity, with a recent Newstimesuk.com poll showing that half of all Democrats think the president is too old for a second term.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and his wife, Jennifer, have been garnering national attention in recent weeks
Some are now speculating that the 55-year-old lawmaker could challenge President Joe Biden in the presidential election
‘I know he supports the president, but I also think he wants to be there, God forbid, if something happens to the president or somebody else challenges him, I think he wants to be there. Hang in there,” Democratic strategist Steven Maviglio said of the California governor.
‘I mean [former Gov.] Jerry Brown gave him some advice in the news a few months ago, “Hey if you want to run, run,” Maviglio told The Hill.
‘He didn’t take that advice, and thought he could run a shadow candidate, as well as the carrier of the message that the Democrats want to talk about… It doesn’t hurt him politically at all.’
Maviglio explained that Newsom’s approach to attacking Republicans in recent weeks could be helpful to Biden, as the California governor can say things the president can’t.
“Biden’s approach that we saw in the debt ceiling bill … was trying to bring people together,” he said. ‘Biden can’t beat Trump the way Newsom does. He can’t hit on DeSantis with the same style and manner as DeSantis.’
But Newsom can, and has.
He called DeSantis’ so-called ‘immigrant flight’ a ‘stunt’ and slammed the move as ’embarrassing’ and ‘sad’ in an interview with Sean Hannity on Monday.
Authorities in Florida have chartered private planes to transport alleged illegals from Florida or elsewhere to predominantly left-leaning states across the United States.
On June 6, officials there admitted they were behind two planes that carried 36 migrants to California.
They never set foot on Floridan soil, but were moved from Texas to New Mexico and then to Sacramento, the state capital.
‘Did he just want to help people out of the goodness of his heart? Give me a break, Sean,’ the California governor angrily responded to Hannity’s question as he said he would happily debate the Florida governor.
DeSantis later responded that Newsom should stop ‘passifooting around’ and just jump into the 2024 race.
But when asked about Hannity’s chances, the lawmaker declined to answer.
Still, that interview seemed to sway some strategists.
‘His interview with Hannity might be the best I’ve ever seen.’ said Dan Schur, a former Republican strategist who is now a professor at the University of California Berkeley and the University of Southern California.
‘Usually when Newsom gets involved in national politics, he sounds very bitter and very angry and a bit divided. But he got to a point in Hannity’s interview where Hannity actually showed him some significant respect.’
Democrats also say Newsom’s attacks on DeSantis are being applauded nationally — even in Florida.
‘I think they’ve been received by Democrats in Florida the same way they’ve been received by Democrats across the country — extraordinarily welcomed and appreciated,’ Fernand Amandi, a Democratic pollster in Miami who worked on both Obama presidential campaigns, told The Hill.
‘I think what’s interesting is that in the same way that Ron DeSantis is trying to portray his candidacy as “Make America Florida,” you see Gavin Newsom as the anti-DeSantis, basically saying “Make America California.”‘
Last week, Newsom gave a rare sit-down interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity
Newsom also spoke about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ migrant flight to California in an interview on NBC’s The Today Show.
Florida officials confirmed that DeSantis flew the migrants from Texas to California earlier this month.
Since then, Newsom has announced that he is working with a Texas sheriff to gather enough evidence to potentially bring charges against DeSantis. He meets with Sheriff Javier Salazar and claims that his Florida counterpart is involved in ‘state-sanctioned kidnapping’ by transporting immigrants to Sacramento.
Newsom said during an interview with KTTV host Alex Michaelson, ‘I met with him yesterday to compare notes because this is exactly the playbook that DeSantis and his staff are using to send immigrants to California.
It’s unclear under what authority Newsom will seek to prosecute DeSantis, but he has hinted at charges if the investigation finds fault.
“Not only do I find it outrageous, I think there’s cause, not only for an investigation, but also to potentially initiate some form of accountability,” Gov. Newsom said. ‘The sheriff would like to see this from the Texas DA and we are pursuing this with the Department of Justice in this state.’
He also said in an interview with NBC’s Today Show: ‘We do not shy away from finding the truth and holding them accountable when they break the law in the state of California.’
Newsom even suggested that after the investigation, DeSantis would not be able to set foot in California without being arrested.
DeSantis, however, maintains that the immigrants were sent to California voluntarily.
Newsom of Bexar County and Texas Sheriff Javier Salazar (R) met this week to ‘compare notes’ against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over possible accusations of immigrants flying from Texas to Democratic enclaves.
His wife, Jennifer, also recently opened up about her older sister’s death, revealing that she accidentally ran her over with a golf cart. Jennifer is pictured here in February
Newsom’s wife, meanwhile, opened up about her older sister’s death in Hawaii in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, revealing that she accidentally ran her over with a golf cart.
He admitted that a few days before his seventh birthday, he was playing in the car with several other children, including his sister Stacia, in Hawaii in 1981.
The second-eldest of five daughters, Sibel Newsom, 48, was on a family holiday when the cart overturned and killed her sibling, whom she hadn’t seen hiding behind her buggy.
He went on to explain that he felt the need to push himself in all aspects of his life over his sister’s death.
‘I felt the pressure to be perfect, to forget my parents, by having two daughters instead of one,’ she said.
‘I’m sure there was survivor’s guilt, and I’m sure, in my subconscious, I have to make up for that loss.
‘And I have to do something or make an impact to improve other people’s lives, double my own, which is a little crazy. I don’t use the word ‘crazy’. But you know, it’s ambitious.
‘I realized I was really hard on myself. I figured you couldn’t fault the 6 [or] 7 years old. You can’t ask them to understand things.’
Some Democrats deny that Newsom is trying to run, saying he is a good asset for the president. Newsom and his wife are pictured here with the president in 2021
About 49 percent of Democrats agree that Joe Biden is too old to be president. Only 28 percent believe he is the right age
Age isn’t Biden’s only electoral liability. More than half of voters said they were worse off since he came to power – some 43 percent said they were much higher
When 1,000 voters were asked for the one word they associated with Biden, the most common answer was ‘old.’
All of these interviews come as a new poll for Newstimesuk.com found that half of Democrats believe Biden is too old for the job, and 52 voters believe they are worse off since he became president.
According to the poll, 71 percent of likely general election voters believe he is too old to be president — let alone at the end of a second term, when he will be 86.
The numbers are disaggregated by political preference, but even 49 percent of Democrats agree.
Only 28 percent of them believed he was ‘about the right age’.
At 80, Biden is already the nation’s oldest president. Every day he increases the record.
If he is elected for another term, he will be 86 years old when he leaves office.
But some Democrats deny that Newsom plans to run.
‘President Biden and Vice President Harris are running a strong campaign focused on the issues most important to the American people: jobs, the economy and protecting American interests abroad. Democrats and the American people are fully behind them,’ said California Democratic National Committeeman Michael Kapp.
There is no ulterior motive behind Newsom’s actions. He’s doing his part to protect American and Californian values, locking horns with President Biden and the Vice President. [Harris].’
But party members see him as a valuable asset to the national conversation on issues like immigration.
‘I think it’s refreshing to see him so aggressively engaged,’ said Simon Rosenberg, a longtime Democratic strategist.
‘I must say the governors of Florida and Texas have been very important voices on the national stage for years. It certainly suits the governor of California.’
And some say they expect Newsom to run in 2028.
‘If he runs one day, and I hope he does, the rest of the country will recognize him as much as we do,’ said Shaonda Westley, former senior strategist and executive director of the California state Democratic Party.
‘He has never shied away from fighting back when our values are under attack and is showing others what that can look like on the national stage.’
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