SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California Gov. Gavin Newsom clashed with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Monday night, insisting that President Joe Biden is physically fit for a second term as president while declining to say whether his supporters have urged him to run against Biden. on the 2024 ballot.
Asked if he thinks Biden is “cognitively strong enough to be president,” Newsom said yes, adding that he talks to the president “all the time” and has traveled with him aboard the Air Force One One.
“You never answered my question directly,” Hannity responded. “How many times does your phone ping a day, people say you have to be in this race because they agree with me it’s not up to the job.”
Newsom stammered a bit before replying, “I’m not answering.”
Newsom has repeatedly said he has no interest in running for president, saying he fully supports Biden’s re-election campaign. In April, Newsom raised money for Biden at a fundraiser in Washington shortly after the president announced his re-election campaign.
But Newsom has continued to raise his national profile, fueling further speculation that he is laying the groundwork for a presidential campaign beyond 2024. After winning re-election as governor in 2022, Newsom took the millions of dollars were left over in your campaign account to start a campaign. new political action committee.
Newsom said he plans to use the money to support Democrats running for office in Republican-dominated states like Arkansas, Alabama and Mississippi. Last week, Newsom said the committee would campaign for a 28th amendment to the US Constitution to tighten federal gun laws.
Fox News said Monday was Newsom’s first interview with the network since 2010, when Newsom was mayor of San Francisco. Since then, Newsom has often joined the chorus of criticism against the conservative press from Democrats who object to its gun coverage and how some of the network’s hosts have embraced former President Donald Trump.
Last year, Newsom admitted that Republicans “were winning now” in part because he said Democrats were too timid, giving conservatives the most compelling narrative on the airwaves. Since then, he has opted for a more confrontational style, which includes Fox News. Newsom has said he is a regular viewer of the network. Last year, his campaign paid for an ad on Fox News in Florida urging residents to “join us in California.”
“We need more of these kinds of conversations, and not just accusing each other of misleading the American people, but I think confronting each other in the context of providing opportunities to address some of the facts that are often ‘miss out in terms of the conversations and topics we choose to pick up on.’
Monday’s interview was very confrontational, with Hannity and Newsom often talking over each other. Hannity noted that California lost population for the first time in its history as a state while Newsom was in office, offering this as proof that the policies of Newsom and his fellow Democrats have failed. This includes California income taxes, with a top rate of 13.3% which is the highest in the country.
Newsom rejected that only the wealthy pay this 13.3% income tax rate. He said the top tax rate was set before he became governor, noting that he has opposed new tax increases on the wealthy, including campaigning against a proposal on the 2022 ballot that would have increased tax the rich to pay for more zero emission vehicles. and to help fight wildfires.
“I have never been an unabashed democrat. I have balanced budgets. We make the hard decisions. I’m a businessman,” Newsom said.
The interview was pre-taped in Sacramento before it aired Monday night. Hannity defended Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ use of taxpayer funds to bring migrants to California.
“You’re an open sanctuary state! Why don’t you embrace them?” Hannity asked
“We embrace everybody here,” Newsom said. “I sat with these migrants. I talked to each of them. They were lied to, deceived.”
But not all were criticisms of Newsom. The governor said he had a good relationship with former Republican President Donald Trump during the coronavirus pandemic, saying Trump “didn’t play politics during COVID with California.”
“I get a lot of criticism from the left saying that,” Newsom said.
Although the interview took up the full hour of Hannity’s show Monday, the two men still had more to talk about. Hannity said the rest of the interview will air later this week.
