In a wide-ranging interview, the California governor predicted a "remarkable moment" for Democrats, dismissing "go high" politics as outdated and essential to stopping the "madness" of the Trump presidency.
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared Thursday that he is "deeply confident" voters will approve Prop 50, a controversial ballot measure allowing the state to redraw its congressional maps on a partisan basis ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
In a sweeping interview, Newsom framed the move as a necessary, gloves-off response to President Donald Trump’s aggressive mid-decade redistricting push in Republican states, which the governor slammed as "rigging the game."
"He did not expect California to fight fire with fire," Newsom told NBC's Kristen Welker, signaling a dramatic shift in Democratic strategy.
The governor argued that the political landscape has been fundamentally broken by Trump, making old norms obsolete. Asked if there was still room for former first lady Michelle Obama’s "When they go low, we go high" philosophy, Newsom was blunt.
“I would love to go back to that, but politics has changed," he said. "The rules of the game have changed... You have to deal with the crisis at hand."
'He Did Not Expect California to Fight Fire with Fire'
At the heart of the new strategy is Prop 50. Newsom has championed the measure as a direct counter-punch to a GOP-controlled redistricting effort in Texas, which could net Republicans five new House seats. That move has sparked a wave of similar efforts in Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio, and others.
“He’s changing the rules. He’s rigging the game because he knows he’ll lose if all things are equal,” Newsom said of Trump, who has actively encouraged these states to redraw maps in his favor.
On Thursday, former Vice President and 2024 Democratic nominee Kamala Harris voiced her support, posting on X that she voted yes on Prop 50 "because we cannot let anyone silence the will of the people."
Newsom's goal is explicit: to retake the House of Representatives in 2026, which he sees as the only way to neutralize the Trump administration.
"The Trump presidency, as we know it, from my perspective, will be over, if we’re successful in 2026," Newsom said, explaining that a Democratic majority would "have subpoena power. They’ll hold hearings."
He sharply criticized the current "supine Congress" under Speaker Mike Johnson, arguing it has abdicated its role as a coequal branch of government.
'People Want Strength, Not Weakness'
Newsom's call to arms is part of a broader argument that the Democratic Party's brand, after a "bruising" 2024 election loss, is finally on the upswing.
“Four months ago, if you asked me that question, I would have been struggling to find positive signs," he admitted. "I feel it’s a completely different moment.”
He pointed to Tuesday's elections including the Prop 50 vote, gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, and the New York City mayoral race as proof of a turning tide.
“I feel like we’re on the precipice of a remarkable moment," he said, citing a new "united front" from congressional leaders Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.
The 2024 election, where the party lost the presidency and both houses of Congress, left Democrats "shell-shocked" and "on our heels," Newsom said. Now, he argued, the party must project a new image.
“People want to see winners... strength, not weakness," he said. "They want clarity and they want conviction.”
On Biden, Trump, and 2028
The governor also addressed the chaotic end of the 2024 campaign, when former President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July, just over 100 days before the election. Newsom, a staunch Biden supporter, flatly rejected the notion that he or other top Democrats should have "sounded the alarm" sooner about Biden's potential mental decline.
“I never experienced [that]," Newsom stated. "I’m not going to substitute myself for... popular opinion. I’m going to express my relationship to my truth with the former president... There was nothing to suggest what you just said."
Newsom also reflected on his combative relationship with the Trump administration, citing legal battles over wildfires and the president's "illegal" deployment of National Guard troops to Los Angeles during immigration protests.
"What the hell do we need to tell people to get them off their couch, to say... ‘I may have liked his bluster... but I didn’t sign up for this’?" Newsom asked, warning that Trump "is not screwing around."
Despite the "madness," Newsom said he would not refuse to work with the president. "I always have an open hand, not a closed fist. I revere the institution of president... I’d pick up the phone if he called in a nanosecond."
When pressed on his own presidential ambitions for 2028, Newsom remained coy, "I don’t," he said, but added: "To the extent fate, the future... we’ll see what happens."
He also brushed aside speculation of friction with Kamala Harris, who wrote in her new book that she was unable to reach Newsom after Biden endorsed her.
"I’ve known Kamala all my life. The last person she needs to reach out to is me," Newsom said, explaining he missed her call but his team was "already on to our press release endorsing her. So I don’t even know why that was even in the book."
CaliToday.Net