California Gov. Gavin Newsom used his final State of the State address Thursday to border his state as a “beacon” of democracy and innovation, looking for to attract a pointy distinction with what he known as the “carnival of chaos” in Washington underneath President Donald Trump.
“In California, we’re not silent. You’re not silent, you’re not hunkering down,” Newsom mentioned, talking to a joint session of the state legislature. “This state is providing a different narrative, an operational model, a policy blueprint for others to follow.”
The speech comes as Newsom prepares to shut out his second time period and outline his file in workplace forward of a doable presidential run. The governor, who has acknowledged he’s “thought about” looking for the Democratic nomination, is term-limited and can go away workplace in January 2027.
Newsom boosted his nationwide profile final yr, when he led California in a profitable effort to redraw the state’s congressional map in response to Republican-led mid-decade redistricting in Texas. The governor pushed again on critics who mentioned Democrats shouldn’t observe in Republicans’ footsteps, arguing that his occasion should “fight fire with fire” to stop the GOP from tipping the scales forward of the 2026 midterm elections. California voters overwhelmingly backed Proposition 50, which may web Democrats 5 further House seats this November.
Thursday marked Newsom’s first State of the State earlier than the legislature since 2020, a spot he attributed to his struggles with dyslexia.
“I have no problem speaking, and perhaps sometimes a little more longwindedly than people like, but when it comes to the written text, that has never served me well,” he mentioned.
Still, Newsom spoke for greater than an hour, laying out his finances priorities, criticizing the Trump administration and defending California’s financial and cultural successes towards its critics.
Newsom railed towards the president and what he described as Trump’s eroding of democratic norms. Before Newsom started his speech, state Rep. Robert Rivas, the speaker of the state Assembly, led a second of silence in honor of Renee Good, a lady who was killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis Wednesday after the administration elevated immigration enforcement in the town.
Newsom mentioned the federal authorities has turn out to be “unrecognizable, protecting the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable.” He blasted final yr’s broad home coverage and tax invoice, which cuts Medicaid and different applications.
The governor additionally highlighted the state’s efforts to combat again towards the Trump administration, notably in the courts, the place California has fought for the discharge of funds withheld by the federal authorities.
“Mr. President: You can’t cut off critical food assistance for millions of people. You can’t send the military into American cities without justification,” Newsom mentioned. “You cannot cruelly and illegally cut off funding for medical research, homeland security, or disaster response. That is wrong.”
While Newsom has bolstered his picture as a fighter among the many occasion’s base, a presidential run would additionally require him to sort out the notion by some Americans that he’s a San Francisco liberal, a label that additionally slowed down Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 marketing campaign. He’ll additionally must defend his file governing California, which has the best unemployment fee of any US state.
California Republicans had been fast to push again on the constructive picture of the state Newsom portrayed Thursday.
“Governor Newsom painted a picture of a California that exists in his imagination,” California Republican Party chairwoman Corrin Rankin mentioned in an announcement. “Californians do not live in Gavin Newsom’s alternate reality, they live in the real California, which looks very different than his fantasy Marin bubble.”
Newsom has mentioned he plans to problem some preconceived notions about him in his upcoming autobiography. The governor used the address Thursday to push again on critics of the state, who he mentioned suffered from “California Derangement Syndrome” and ignore the state’s progress.
Newsom mentioned that unsheltered homelessness in the state dropped 9% between 2024 and 2025, in response to the state’s early knowledge.
In response to criticisms that California’s taxes are too excessive, the governor argued the state’s tax system, with larger taxes for high-income earners, is fairer than techniques in states reminiscent of Texas and Florida, which he mentioned burden low-income earners extra.
“So, the question to all of you: Who are the high tax states?” he mentioned.
Newsom additionally argued his administration has made strides in making California extra inexpensive. He pointed to minimal wage will increase for quick meals and well being care staff, and the launch of the state’s generic drug label, which not too long ago started providing insulin.
To sort out housing prices, Newsom mentioned he plans to name on the state to go after large traders who purchase single household properties. The announcement echoes the president, who said this week he desires to ban massive institutional traders from buying extra single-family properties.
“I think it’s shameful that we allow private-equity firms in Manhattan to become some of the biggest landlords here in our cities in California,” he mentioned.
The governor made a dig on the president, who has mentioned that Democrats manufactured affordability and cost-of-living issues.
“Affordability, it’s not a word we just discovered, certainly not a hoax,” he mentioned.