Is the left turning on Newsom?
The Daily Show blasted Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) on Wednesday, packaging him as potential 2028 fodder while mocking the resume he’d be running on.
The segment, part of the show’s “Daily Showography” series, sketched Newsom’s origin story with a jab at privilege dressed up as grit. “With nothing but his grit, his refined palate and the financial backing of an oil tycoon,” the narrator said, as the video recounted his early winery venture and political climb from San Francisco mayor to governor.
Then came the punchline: the “setbacks.”
“But Governor Newsom has also faced setbacks, like having to hide half of his moneymaker during the pandemic and making some hard choices, like limiting public gatherings,” the narrator said.
“Well, most public gatherings.” The video then cuts to a clip showing Newsom dining at the French Laundry at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
From there, the segment pivoted to Newsom’s online posture toward President Donald Trump.
“And while Trump was sending his soldiers into the streets, Gavin was ready to fight back in the tweets,” the narrator said, before the video played a news anchor clip: “California Governor Gavin Newsom has been mocking President Trump with all-caps social media posts.”
The show then leaned into the 2028 setup — framing Newsom as a camera-ready Democrat pitching himself as the solution to entrenched problems.
“And so we ask that you consider Gavin Newsom — a screen-ready, Christian Bale-type — ready to tackle chronic problems, like homelessness and high-speed rail. Plus, he dances while he talks, for some reason,” the narrator said.
The segment displayed images of two headlines: one from March 2025 describing California homelessness as a “record high,” and another from the Los Angeles Times in 2024 saying the high-speed rail project was “$100 billion short” and still “years from reality.”
Newsom, for his part, recently touted the completion of the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s Southern Railhead Facility in Kern County. “We’ve taken another critical step in the track-laying stage,” he said, according to a press release.
“Gavin Newsom — he’s more than a politician; he’s a leading man,” the narrator said.
Watch the clip below:
Gavin Newsom, the screen-ready Christian Bale type, is ready to tackle issues like homelessness and high-speed rail, even if at a glacial pace pic.twitter.com/XXJLzR7ImX
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) February 5, 2026
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