California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the release of his new “This Is Gavin Newsom” podcast on Wednesday. Democratic leaders said they would feature conversations with “some of the biggest leaders and architects of the Maga movement.”
The podcast shows the latest move in a series of publicity from governors looking to expand their audience nationwide, and is widely anticipated for the 2028 presidential contest. Newsom will release another podcast last summer and a new book in the spring.
Newsom’s Aides says the unpaid podcast gives the governor an opportunity to connect directly with Americans and share his perspective on the issues that day.
“Part of his strength as a communicator is helping people to go ahead, how to clarify their message and how to fight back,” said Anthony York, a spokesman for Newsom. “And I think this podcast is devised in that vein.”
The new project using Iheartradio is expected to begin airing in March. In July, Newsom launched a weekly sports and culture podcast called “Politickin’.”
Newsom could potentially be more sporadically involved in “Politickin,” which includes interviews with celebrities such as comedian Chelsea Handler, Dallas Mavericks owner and Mark Cuban, as the new podcast begins. The show has not aired since a wildfire ignited in Los Angeles County in early January and ordered Newsom’s attention.
This is a teaser promoting “Gavin Newsom,” and the governor says it’s not a regular politician podcast, and he says he’s talking about “people who I respect, as well as people who I oppose.”
Newsom mentioned egg costs, tariffs, the power of executive orders, and the efficiency of Elon Musk’s government as a topic he plans to explore.
The new podcast could suggest that Newsom has been bored of a more calm stance towards the Trump administration since the wildfire broke out in Los Angeles.
The governor attracted the public’s attention during the 2024 presidential election cycle as a democratic fighter against the GOP. He took a jab with Trump, sat down for an interview with conservative host Sean Hannity, discussing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Fox News, and praised him for refusing to leave the fight with Republicans.
But Newsom changed after the wildfires and played the role of a disciplined politician who was eager to work with him rather than clashing with the Trump administration.
During Tarmac’s greetings at LAX, a private call and in-person meetings at the White House, Newsmom attempted to correct his relationship with the president, who appears to have frayed after Trump’s first term. The governor was able to work directly with the president as he seeks federal disaster aid in response to the fire to benefit his members of California.
If his podcast becomes a pathway to criticize the president’s actions in Washington again, it is unclear what he plans to maintain ties with Trump.
“I don’t think the point of this is to have a ventilating session for an AD Hominem attack on the President,” York said. “But that’s been said, if there’s something that needs to be spoken up in Washington, policy-wise, this is a forum for that.”
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