California Gov. Gavin Newsom admits Democrats have been “destroyed” in the embassies and “crushed” in the narrative as they face a red wave of Republicans in the Midterms
- The Democratic governor said the messaging was his “fundamental grievance with my damn party.”
- “Does it feel like a red wave?” CBS Washington correspondent Major Garrett asked the governor. “Yes, of course,” Newsom replied
- Other Democrats, including Newsom’s aunt, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, were more optimistic in their forecasts for next week’s election
- Newsom has been circulated as a presidential candidate in 2024 if 79-year-old Biden does not run again
- He said he has no plans to run for president: “It’s not my ambition because it’s not the direction I’m leaning in, it’s not the moment.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that Democrats would be “destroyed” ahead of next week’s election at the interim notice.
The Democratic governor said the messaging was his “fundamental grievance with my damn party.”
“We are crushed by the narrative. We’ve got to do better at being on offense and stop being on the damn defense,” Newsom added in an interview with CBS.
“Does it feel like a red wave?” Washington correspondent Major Garrett asked the governor. “Yes, of course,” Newsom replied.
Other Democrats, including the spokeswoman for Newsom’s aunt Nancy Pelosi, were more optimistic in their forecasts for next week’s election, brushing off claims that Republicans will sweep the House and possibly the Senate.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that Democrats would be “destroyed” ahead of next week’s election at the interim notice
“Does it feel like a red wave?” Washington correspondent Major Garrett asked the governor. “Yes, of course,” Newsom replied
“I’m not getting paid to say that. I get paid to say, you know, ‘Fate and Feeling’. I mean I understand. Look, I mean, I could be the cheerleader. I’m also pragmatic, you can tell,” he said.
Newsom has been circulated as a 2024 presidential candidate if 79-year-old Biden doesn’t run again, and he’s recently fought battles with his GOP peers by running ads in states like Florida and Texas.
He hardly cares about any kind of re-election campaign in deep blue California. Now facing off against a severely underfunded Republican, he’s up 20 points in the polls — despite nearly being recalled last year.
The governor said he has no plans to run for president. ‘How can you be so sure?’ Garrett asked. “Because it’s not my ambition, because it’s not the direction I’m leaning in, it’s not the moment.”
“We are crushed by the narrative. We’ve got to do better at being on offense and stop being on the damn defense,” Newsom added in an interview with CBS
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is lobbying the embattled Democrats to save a party he says is being “destroyed by messaging.” He only spoke to @MajorCBS addressing questions as to whether his political ambitions extend beyond the Golden State. pic.twitter.com/CzVdOhz7kX
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) November 1, 2022
Garrett pressed, “One way to answer that question is to say, ‘I will never run for President of the United States.’ Can you say that?’
“Yeah, I’m not interested,” Newsom said.
But rumors of an eventual Newsom run circulated before he even entered public office. In his Senior Yearbook at Santa Clara University in 1989, his family wrote a congratulatory message: ‘Gavinsy from George, you did it! The next step of the presidency?’
In September, Newsom went on the airwaves in his home state to campaign against Proposition 30, a voting measure that would tax over $2 million in revenue to fund EV incentives. He also recently aired ads promoting Proposition 1 — a measure that would change the state’s constitution to include abortion rights.
Newsom said he’s proud of the Democrats and their record in Congress — it’s just the message he has trouble with.
“It’s been a master class over the past two years, not necessarily in effective communication but in terms of substance in the circumstances with all the headwinds and confusion in our position. I think it was remarkable.’
Republicans have focused their medium-term messages on the economy, crime and immigration, while hammering on inflation issues in the final days leading up to Tuesday’s races.
Newsom’s warning comes as others within his own party have warned Democrats not to get too involved in abortion messages and to become more concerned with economic issues.
“While the abortion issue must remain at the forefront, I believe it would be political misconduct on the part of Democrats to ignore the state of the economy and allow Republican lies and distortions to go unanswered,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt. ) said in an op-ed published in The Guardian last month.