California Gov. Gavin C. Newsom has been getting under the skin of the most loyal supporters of President Donald J. Trump.
Newsom, 57, has embraced mocking Trump, 79, on social media. The Democratic politician’s X account for his press office spent weeks sarcastically imitating the MAGA leader’s all-caps communication style.
In addition to trolling the Republican president and his followers with tongue-in-cheek tweets, the Newsom team raised the stakes by offering MAGA-inspired merchandise.
A website dedicated to selling items like “Newsom Was Right About Everything” hats, “The Chosen One” t-shirt, “Trump Is Not Hot” tank tops, and Bibles was set up on Aug. 24.
Fox News political analyst Will Cain took exception to Newsom putting MAGA-inspired merch on sale. The conservative host slammed the 42nd mayor of San Francisco and his left-wing base.
“He’s seemed to have found ground, legs, with the left by mocking President Trump. Like a ChatGPT personality, he’s just borrowing now,” Cain said about Newsom on his show.
The ex-ESPN contributor then slammed Newsom’s new online shop before adding, “His personality is just a shadow, shadows on the wall, a Xerox copy of others, but that works on the left.”
A clip of Cain’s comments got a response from Newsom’s personal X account. The Californian posted, “Thank you for the promotion of our ‘FANTASTIC’ Patriot Shop, @WillCainShow!!!!!”
Many of the replies to “The Will Cain Show” video pointed out that Newsom’s taunting tactics appear to be going over the heads of Trump’s diehard backers.
“It’s hilarious that so many of you MAGA idiots still don’t get the joke!” one person tweeted. A second like-minded user wondered, “How do you not get the joke?”
A Newsom fan added, “Can’t wait to buy some!” Similarly, someone on the app wrote, “Thank you for letting me know. I just purchased a lot of merch.”
However, a skeptic of Newsom asked, “Is this a ‘Patriot Shop’ or a ‘Laundromat’ for homeless/train/fire money? Just curious. I can’t imagine anyone actually buying this stuff.”
Despite critics such as Cain having an issue with Newsom clearly making fun of Trump, consumers apparently rallied behind the idea of a Democrat fighting back against the current White House occupant with humor.
According to GQ, Newsom’s shop sold $300,000 worth of merchandise in the first 24 hours after becoming available. The $100 bibles are already listed as “sold out” on the site. The caps and shirts are going for $32.
“If Trump keeps handing us material, we’ll keep punching back with it,” Newsom spokesperson Hannah Milgrom told the outlet. “The merch is flying, Dems are fired up, and we’re just getting started.”
As Newsom’s national profile continues to rise, his press office account on X proceeds to ridicule Trump and MAGA. For instance, conservatives lashing out over Cracker Barrel for announcing a change to the company’s logo got the so-called “Dark Newsom” treatment.
“WHAT IS WRONG WITH CRACKER BARREL?? KEEP YOUR BEAUTIFUL LOGO!!! THE NEW ONE LOOKS LIKE CHEAP VELVEETA ‘CHEESE’ FROM WALMART, THE PLACE FOR ‘GROCERIES’ (AN OLD FASHIONED TERM)!!! ‘’FIX IT’ ASAP! WOKE IS DEAD!! THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER,” Newsom’s press office tweeted in Trump’s tone on Aug. 21.
Fox News claimed Newsom and the Democratic Party “joined the backlash against Cracker Barrel” as right-wing commentators blamed “wokeness” for the Southern-themed restaurant chain removing the man and wooden barrel from the traditional logo.
The cable network then became one of the latest targets of Newsom’s troll game when his press office responded, “WOW. EVEN FOX NEWS IS CREDITING THE GREATEST GOVERNOR IN THE WORLD, I, GAVIN C. NEWSOM FOR MAKING CRACKER BARREL GREAT AGAIN!!! THANK YOU!”
In addition to Cain, several of his Fox News colleagues have also been caught clutching their pearls over the parodying of Trump on social media. “The Five” panelist Dana Perino urged Newsom to “be more serious.”
“Primetime” host Jesse Watters questioned why Newsom does not “do his job and protect the people?” Longtime Fox News broadcaster Sean Hannity argued that America is “not going to vote” for that “performative confrontational style.”
Following numerous tweets from Newsom’s press office going viral, Trump finally fired back at his tormentor on the Truth Social platform on Aug. 21. The billionaire businessman insulted the potential 2028 presidential candidate, who is presently leading the betting odds to be the next Democratic nominee.
“Gavin Newscum is way down in the polls. He is viewed as the man who is destroying the once Great State of California. I will save California!!! President DJT,” Trump posted. Newsom’s press office clapped back by referring to the president as a snowflake.
