Gavin Newsom Tears Into Terrible GOP Policies in “Name of Freedom”
California Governor Gavin Newsom ripped into his Republican counterparts on their apparent disregard for human life during a weekend interview.
Newsom has previously made clear he isn’t afraid to call out Republicans for their hypocritical policies on issues including gun control, health care, and child welfare. His interview, which aired on MSNBC Sunday, included some of his most forceful comments yet about the policies they push “in the name of freedom.”
He first took aim at Texas Governor Greg Abbott. “One of the worst crime and murder rates in America and one of the worst mental health records of any governor in America?” Newsom said. “I’m not so convinced about the merits of his leadership.”
But Newsom pointed out that the problems go beyond Texas. “Eight of the top 10 murder states are Republican states,” he said. “Seven of the top 10 dependent states … are red states.”
“The life expectancy in the South, and they’re not expanding Medicaid and prenatal care and providing child care? It’s jaw-dropping,” Newsom continued.
“Infant mortality? You care about life, and you look at life expectancy? You care about life, and you’re getting kids that are gunned down by weapons of war? Spare me. All in the name of freedom, as you’re banning books?”
“With all due respect, we should not be on the defensive as the Democratic Party. The Republican Party should be on their heels, not us,” Newsom added.
Newsom is no stranger to taking Republicans to task. In January, while visiting victims of the tragic Monterey Park shooting, he told he told CBS anchor Norah O’Donnell that the Second Amendment, which many Americans believe guarantees them unfettered access to guns, is “becoming a suicide pact.”
“Nothing about this is surprising. Everything about this is infuriating,” he said of the Monterey Park attack. Hours later, while still visiting, he then received reports that there had been another shooting, this time in Half Moon Bay, which killed seven people and injured one more.
More recently, during a June interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Newsom again highlighted the major discrepancies between Democratic- and Republican-led states. Newsom pointed out that blue states make up a much stronger portion of the U.S. economy, meaning they essentially subsidize red ones.