How trolling Trump became a strategy for Newsom
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Photo illustration: Maura Losch/Axios. Photo: Library of Congress
California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently shook up his communications team, and now the outspoken Democrat is turning many of Donald Trump's brash political tactics against the president himself.
- Newsom and his team have used online trolling, meme wars, mocking TikTok videos, insults such as "cuck," and even a lawsuit against a media company — in this case, one accusing Fox News of misleading reporting — to create an edgy resistance.
Why it matters: In the lead-up to a potential 2028 presidential campaign, Newsom is essentially acknowledging that many of Trump's tactics are effective — and he's betting they can help Democrats reach more voters in the attention economy.
- Newsom remains coy about a White House run, but he's increasingly acting and sounding like a candidate.
- He's also sat for lengthy podcast interviews with conservative figures, and last week made a trip to the early primary state of South Carolina.
Driving the news: In the aftermath of Trump's attacks on Newsom's handling of the fires in Los Angeles this year, the governor retooled his rapid-response operation in ways that resemble that of Trump.
- Over the weekend, Newsom's office called Trump Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller a "fascist cuck" — a term Trump's team often uses to attack its opponents — after Miller criticized a judge's ruling and called the judge a "communist."
- "Sorry the Constitution hurt your feelings, Stephen," Newsom's office wrote on social media. "Cry harder."
In response to Trump dodging questions this week about releasing more information on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Newsom's team posted a TikTok that included an old photo of Trump and Epstein with Nickelback's "Photograph" playing.
- Newsom aides also have taken to posting various "Star Wars" and "Simpsons" memes to mock Trump.
- Following another Trump move, Newsom sat for a four-hour interview with Navy Seal-turned-podcaster Shawn Ryan. Trump had been on Ryan's show during last year's campaign.
What they're saying: "In today's fractured media environment, it's never been more important to communicate immediately and effectively. Governor Newsom gets that," Newsom spokesperson Lindsey Cobia told Axios.
- "While the Trump administration uses these tactics to demean and belittle the powerless, Gavin Newsom is using them to stand up to the powerful and call out the authoritarian methods of the current White House occupant."
By the numbers: At a time when Democrats are wrestling with low poll numbers and are searching for ways to counter Trump, Newsom's approach has earned him millions of new followers across social media platforms.
- On TikTok he now has 1.8 million followers, up from just over 500,000 in March, according to the Internet Archive.
- That's far more than potential 2028 Democratic rivals such as Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (286,700 followers), Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (382,600), and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (1.4 million), but behind others such as former Vice President Kamala Harris (9.1 million) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (4.1 million).
Reality check: Followers don't equal votes.
- They can, however, be a sign of enthusiasm.
Between the lines: Newsom also has been trying to shed what his team feels is the unfair caricature of a San Francisco liberal — which is what Trump's campaign attacked Kamala Harris as in 2024.
- In his conversation with Ryan, Newsom discussed how he has a "business mindset" and talked about his frustration with San Francisco regulations when he was a young entrepreneur.
- Newsom also said the Biden administration "failed" in its border policies that Trump exploited in the last election.
- He said he's not for decriminalizing border crossings, a concept several Democratic presidential candidates embraced in the 2020 primary.
Newsom launched his own podcast this year and has had calm interviews with prominent conservatives such as Charlie Kirk, Steve Bannon and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
- Some progressives criticized Newsom for telling Kirk that trans women playing in women's sports was "deeply unfair." Newsom also said he doesn't allow his staff to use potentially alienating terms such as "Latinx," though he previously had used the word.
Newsom has had some trouble booking conservatives on his show — a few have declined because they believed that participating could help him politically.
- On her popular conservative show, Megyn Kelly told Tucker Carlson in April: "I've said I'm against conservatives going on his podcast because I think it's helping him train for 2028, and I don't think we should help him."
- Carlson agreed and said he'd declined an invitation from Newsom because he thought that "the point of this is not to have a real conversation or to answer questions. The point of this is to rehabilitate" Newsom.
