I know a lot of mainline dems read my publication, so for those of you who are skeptical of my argument here because of my role as a transgender journalist, know that I _endorsed_ Kamala Harris for president. The critiques I levy against Newsom are very particular to him, and he poses a unique danger that I cannot stay silent on.
Newsom isn't national-politics material even apart from this, you're right that he's not in line with us, but there are other issues that would annihilate him, kind of the polar opposite of Ron DeSantis, if you will. I have no beef with the man, nor with Cali, but we need some better new blood in 2028.
1) There has not been a successful candidate for POTUS from California since Ronald Reagan (and before that Richard Nixon; I don't think there've *ever* been others - not even when we were the "Grapes of Wrath" state). Jerry Brown, a genuinely thoughtful and skilled man who knew how to "triangulate" in the purple waters of his time, didn't even come close.
2) Newsom is a man who has been driven to be president since a very early age (you can find a video of Willy Brown, a truly savvy politician, saying this). While that doesn't instantly disqualify him, it does put his motivations - and likely responses to pressure - in a vital perspective.
I'm glad he's doing his DJ-trolling, but I will do what I can to keep him off the ballot (IF we have one - so far from guaranteed) in 2028.
You absolutely do NOT need to downplay your argument and you do NOT need to limit your criticism to Newsom - especially when (as you noted) the hierarchy of the Democratic Party tried to blame transgender people for Harris's loss.
And as some folks (including me - https://whoviating.substack.com/p/newsom-and-moulton) noted at the time of his revealing exchange with Charlie Kirk, it's not just Newsom. Politico quoted "a Democratic strategist from a swing state" as saying he had created "a permission structure for other Democrats to do this, too."
This is what happens when you have a party hierarchy more interested in protecting incumbents than in justice or the future. It doesn't mean we give up; it does mean we don't have to be polite or restricted in calling our their failures.
I totally agree with you. How can we send a message to Newsom from our community, including all of us allies - a message he’ll receive and hear? Could you write a letter that we could sign onto?
1) Send it to Rob Bonta (CA attorney general) on his website; he is a far stronger ally, and talks to Newsom frequently (obviously).
2) Send it to https://www.wlbinstitute.org/. Brown has been a keep-your-distance mentor to Newsom for decades, and understand politics *far* better than the mentee.
I've sent him a couple of messages about my feelings on his betrayal of the trans community. If enough people message him, maybe it will move the needle, although I'm not holding my breath.
No one would mistake me for a "mainline dem" 🤣, but as a resident of this state for 51 years, I'll be happy to second your critique.
If soldiers in a war (which I've been in) could vote for their generals and admirals, they would choose the men, women, und alle dazwischen und ausserhalb - danke Jan Böhmermann ❤️ - whom they trusted. It's a very deeply felt and held concept. I know I speak for my deceased cousin who spent four years in a Japanese POW camp to defend what our country is giving away. Hanna Hoffmann-Schoenberg agrees, for what it's worth.
I really hope JB Pritzger (Illinois governor) picks up steam and rolls to victory in the 2028 primary. Pritzker recently started an LGBTQ+ legal hotline for residents. It's obviously aimed at helping trans and gender non-conforming folks.
Pritzker is one of the few remaining Dems I still trust. Why more national Dems are ignoring him, I don't know. The siren call of transgender genocide and fascism is apparently too powerful for most Dems to resist.
Pritzker shows us how to "troll the right" while also remaining steadfast in his protections of people's rights and maintaining a tone of an actual politician
Protecting people's rights is better than trolling the right. It's fighting against them. I don't give a fuck about hurting anyone's feelings, I want equal rights and freedom for everyone, and that pisses the right off more than anything else, because they operate through birthright and borders, policing their way to what they see as victory. A victory won by tearing people down is a promotion of weakness.
Thank you, Erin. Just the other day I was hoping you’d write a piece such as this one. If one group is unsafe, all are unsafe. No one is expendable. Thank you for writing it so clearly for the liberal folks that perhaps want to get it and aren’t there yet. I have cishet family that reads and respects you and I hope this post will make a difference.
He can spin like a top, for all I care. There was a time when I suggested he would be a good presidential candidate, but I'll never trust him again. I wouldn't vote for him for dog catcher.
I've had cis friends of 10 years unprompted telling me we can't 'purity test' our candidates (hadn't brought anything up politically so this was clearly a nod towards vote for Gavin even if you wont have rights still).
The right does nothing but 'purity test' their candidates, and it fucking wins. Dems generally dont (looking at the genocide as a glaring example). Human rights are not a purity standard, its principled and doing whats right. Gavin would continue the neoliberalism slide that ushered in fascism, at best in my mind.
I've voted in every election, special election, primary for over 2 decades, and if Gavin is the nominee, there's 0 chance I'll vote for him. I'm so fucking resentful from being betrayed like this that frankly, a sit out is the best they can hope for from me if its Gavin and they run a Labour UK style 'dignity and respect' campaign while they smile to make cis people feel good about themselves and take everything from us (its not possible for me to hate them more for this turn and the blame they put on us, when they did nothing to even defend us in the elction aside from 'I will follow the law' on trans stuff, which isn't support). Sorry for the vent, seeing this is infuriating and really hits and some hope for the future.
As usual, Erin’s analysis is spot on, especially the part that if you sacrifice one part of trans rights - which BTW are basic human rights - then every other part of it just collapses like a house of cards. I’m amazed at the number of supposed friends and allies that don’t get that crucial point - “well, just compromise on sports”. It NEVER stops there. NEVER.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Gavin Newsome is a Bill Clinton 2.0. He only espouses progressive principles when he believes it's advantageous. If he thought it would help him get to the white house, he would be cheering on ICE and saying he thinks we need to deport more immigrants.
He obviously thinks adopting transphobic positions will help him win in 2028. It's sickening to think that our choice then could well be Newsome, who doesn't care if people like me live or die, and a republican, who actively wants us to disappear.
I'd feel safer under Newsom than under Trump (or whatever goose-stepping goon replaces him after he snuffs it) in exactly the same way that I'd feel safer smoking cigarettes than I would smoking meth. Neither one is safe, but if it's a choice between the two then one 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 won't kill me as quickly as the other. I worry about my access to bathrooms and healthcare with Newsom; I worry that Trump is going to send a squad of door-kickers to do a dance on my face and then shoot me.
I've considered your POV, and I agree to an extent. However, I've decided that if both parties are going to shit all over me, the most important thing I can do is to be heard. And I can be heard most loudly by not voting for the candidate of either party. Beyond that, the details are to be determined.
I would also feel safer under a Newsom presidency but the idea of voting for a candidate that I do not trust will protect the basic human rights of all Americans is revolting.
Newsom is willing to go toe-to-toe with Trumpy Boi but all I see there is toxic masculinity. He's just waiting for the bus to come by so he can throw us under it.
Muslims didn't want to support Kamala, now look at how much worse off they are. Sometimes the future is more than one election away.... If we even get to the next election.
I hope a better option presents itself, but if we get to the point where it's him or Taco Tits' successor, I'll reluctantly vote for GCN.
I know a lot of mainline dems read my publication, so for those of you who are skeptical of my argument here because of my role as a transgender journalist, know that I _endorsed_ Kamala Harris for president. The critiques I levy against Newsom are very particular to him, and he poses a unique danger that I cannot stay silent on.
Newsom isn't national-politics material even apart from this, you're right that he's not in line with us, but there are other issues that would annihilate him, kind of the polar opposite of Ron DeSantis, if you will. I have no beef with the man, nor with Cali, but we need some better new blood in 2028.
1) There has not been a successful candidate for POTUS from California since Ronald Reagan (and before that Richard Nixon; I don't think there've *ever* been others - not even when we were the "Grapes of Wrath" state). Jerry Brown, a genuinely thoughtful and skilled man who knew how to "triangulate" in the purple waters of his time, didn't even come close.
2) Newsom is a man who has been driven to be president since a very early age (you can find a video of Willy Brown, a truly savvy politician, saying this). While that doesn't instantly disqualify him, it does put his motivations - and likely responses to pressure - in a vital perspective.
I'm glad he's doing his DJ-trolling, but I will do what I can to keep him off the ballot (IF we have one - so far from guaranteed) in 2028.
You absolutely do NOT need to downplay your argument and you do NOT need to limit your criticism to Newsom - especially when (as you noted) the hierarchy of the Democratic Party tried to blame transgender people for Harris's loss.
And as some folks (including me - https://whoviating.substack.com/p/newsom-and-moulton) noted at the time of his revealing exchange with Charlie Kirk, it's not just Newsom. Politico quoted "a Democratic strategist from a swing state" as saying he had created "a permission structure for other Democrats to do this, too."
This is what happens when you have a party hierarchy more interested in protecting incumbents than in justice or the future. It doesn't mean we give up; it does mean we don't have to be polite or restricted in calling our their failures.
I totally agree with you. How can we send a message to Newsom from our community, including all of us allies - a message he’ll receive and hear? Could you write a letter that we could sign onto?
I have two suggestions:
1) Send it to Rob Bonta (CA attorney general) on his website; he is a far stronger ally, and talks to Newsom frequently (obviously).
2) Send it to https://www.wlbinstitute.org/. Brown has been a keep-your-distance mentor to Newsom for decades, and understand politics *far* better than the mentee.
You can message the governor at https://www.gov.ca.gov/contact/
I've sent him a couple of messages about my feelings on his betrayal of the trans community. If enough people message him, maybe it will move the needle, although I'm not holding my breath.
No one would mistake me for a "mainline dem" 🤣, but as a resident of this state for 51 years, I'll be happy to second your critique.
If soldiers in a war (which I've been in) could vote for their generals and admirals, they would choose the men, women, und alle dazwischen und ausserhalb - danke Jan Böhmermann ❤️ - whom they trusted. It's a very deeply felt and held concept. I know I speak for my deceased cousin who spent four years in a Japanese POW camp to defend what our country is giving away. Hanna Hoffmann-Schoenberg agrees, for what it's worth.
https://jaynasheats.substack.com/p/literature-politics-and-gender-affirmation
I really hope JB Pritzger (Illinois governor) picks up steam and rolls to victory in the 2028 primary. Pritzker recently started an LGBTQ+ legal hotline for residents. It's obviously aimed at helping trans and gender non-conforming folks.
Pritzker is one of the few remaining Dems I still trust. Why more national Dems are ignoring him, I don't know. The siren call of transgender genocide and fascism is apparently too powerful for most Dems to resist.
JB would be an excellent choice for the party to endorse. At least, based on what we know of him.
Pritzker shows us how to "troll the right" while also remaining steadfast in his protections of people's rights and maintaining a tone of an actual politician
Protecting people's rights is better than trolling the right. It's fighting against them. I don't give a fuck about hurting anyone's feelings, I want equal rights and freedom for everyone, and that pisses the right off more than anything else, because they operate through birthright and borders, policing their way to what they see as victory. A victory won by tearing people down is a promotion of weakness.
I agree JB Pritzger seems like an allay and a good and decent person.
Well said. Newsom is a textbook reactionary centrist whose only guiding principle is his polling
Newsom is clearly a tool and an opportunist. 🙄
Hopefully he fades away in a year or two and all of this bigotry ages like spoiled milk.
Very glad btw I do not live in CA…wondering what state is going to set the standards for equality and Justice now (perhaps NY, WA, CO, or MN?).
Thank you, Erin. Just the other day I was hoping you’d write a piece such as this one. If one group is unsafe, all are unsafe. No one is expendable. Thank you for writing it so clearly for the liberal folks that perhaps want to get it and aren’t there yet. I have cishet family that reads and respects you and I hope this post will make a difference.
Me too. I knew this essay was coming. Thank you, Erin.
Metaphorically, because he stabbed us in the front, stabbed us in the back, and then he shit in our cereal.
He's a non-starter unless he does some seriously irrevocable 180deg turning.
He can spin like a top, for all I care. There was a time when I suggested he would be a good presidential candidate, but I'll never trust him again. I wouldn't vote for him for dog catcher.
Oh I'm not ever going to trust him, I also will not vote for him until he "says the words" and "does the things".
He's so far gone I'm not sure what those even could be now.
I can only conceive the first 5 words of introduction: "I am a spineless shithead."
I've had cis friends of 10 years unprompted telling me we can't 'purity test' our candidates (hadn't brought anything up politically so this was clearly a nod towards vote for Gavin even if you wont have rights still).
The right does nothing but 'purity test' their candidates, and it fucking wins. Dems generally dont (looking at the genocide as a glaring example). Human rights are not a purity standard, its principled and doing whats right. Gavin would continue the neoliberalism slide that ushered in fascism, at best in my mind.
I've voted in every election, special election, primary for over 2 decades, and if Gavin is the nominee, there's 0 chance I'll vote for him. I'm so fucking resentful from being betrayed like this that frankly, a sit out is the best they can hope for from me if its Gavin and they run a Labour UK style 'dignity and respect' campaign while they smile to make cis people feel good about themselves and take everything from us (its not possible for me to hate them more for this turn and the blame they put on us, when they did nothing to even defend us in the elction aside from 'I will follow the law' on trans stuff, which isn't support). Sorry for the vent, seeing this is infuriating and really hits and some hope for the future.
"I've had cis friends of 10 years unprompted telling me we can't 'purity test' our candidates."
He's all but agreeing 100% with people who want us dead or imprisoned, children included.
This is a mere "impurity" ? !!!
Gavin is slimy and should not be president. Shame on the democrats for throwing trans people under the bus.
As usual, Erin’s analysis is spot on, especially the part that if you sacrifice one part of trans rights - which BTW are basic human rights - then every other part of it just collapses like a house of cards. I’m amazed at the number of supposed friends and allies that don’t get that crucial point - “well, just compromise on sports”. It NEVER stops there. NEVER.
Reinforcing, and rebuilding the old world oligarchy of sexism and racism is just not where it’s at for me.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Gavin Newsome is a Bill Clinton 2.0. He only espouses progressive principles when he believes it's advantageous. If he thought it would help him get to the white house, he would be cheering on ICE and saying he thinks we need to deport more immigrants.
He obviously thinks adopting transphobic positions will help him win in 2028. It's sickening to think that our choice then could well be Newsome, who doesn't care if people like me live or die, and a republican, who actively wants us to disappear.
As a trans person, I would feel safer under a Newsom presidency. No one is perfect, but he'd be way better than Trump.
I'd feel safer under Newsom than under Trump (or whatever goose-stepping goon replaces him after he snuffs it) in exactly the same way that I'd feel safer smoking cigarettes than I would smoking meth. Neither one is safe, but if it's a choice between the two then one 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 won't kill me as quickly as the other. I worry about my access to bathrooms and healthcare with Newsom; I worry that Trump is going to send a squad of door-kickers to do a dance on my face and then shoot me.
But I shouldn't have to worry about 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳.
I've considered your POV, and I agree to an extent. However, I've decided that if both parties are going to shit all over me, the most important thing I can do is to be heard. And I can be heard most loudly by not voting for the candidate of either party. Beyond that, the details are to be determined.
10/10
"I worry that Trump is going to send a squad of door-kickers to do a dance on my face and then shoot me."
One word.
Fougasse.
I would also feel safer under a Newsom presidency but the idea of voting for a candidate that I do not trust will protect the basic human rights of all Americans is revolting.
Newsom is willing to go toe-to-toe with Trumpy Boi but all I see there is toxic masculinity. He's just waiting for the bus to come by so he can throw us under it.
Thank you for this, Erin. It makes the argument clearly and forcefully.
Honestly, I kinda figured it would come to this.
Muslims didn't want to support Kamala, now look at how much worse off they are. Sometimes the future is more than one election away.... If we even get to the next election.
I hope a better option presents itself, but if we get to the point where it's him or Taco Tits' successor, I'll reluctantly vote for GCN.
Newsom is what we all a "political wind sock".