Why Everyone Should Stop Freaking Out About Gavin Newsom's Social Media

If his goal was to get people talking, Gavin Newsom has succeeded with his new pugnacious, Trump-like approach to social media. In case you missed it, Newsom’s press office account has started posting Trump-style all-caps diatribes, memes, and AI-generated images designed to troll anyone and everyone.

Here are some examples of recent Newsom posts:

Newsom’s team is posting constantly, picking fights with everyone, and doing a pretty funny imitation of Trumpian posting.

Well, the trolls have been trolled. Everyone from Fox News to the White House is freaking out over Newsom’s new style. Dana Perino, who briefly seemed to forget that her job is pro-Trump propagandist, said:

“You have to stop it with the Twitter thing. If I were his wife, I would say you are making a fool of yourself, stop it… He’s got a big job as governor of California, but if he wants an even bigger job, he has to be a little more serious.”

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung, a particularly odious carbuncle, called Newsom a “beta cuck.” Tomi Lahren, Fox host Trace Gallagher, Trump flunky/Kennedy Center head Richard Grenell, and others have whined about Newsom’s posts.

According to multiple sources, some Democratic strategists have also criticized Newsom’s approach.

And then yesterday morning, Morning Joe himself, often an arbiter of political etiquette, weighed in on Newsom:

“Willie, you can see the Democrats are trying to find their footing. And it’s quite embarrassing, actually. I mean, Gavin Newsom. I mean, have you seen what he’s doing online? … Hey Gavin, talk into the camera, and talk about making life more affordable, not only for people in California, but if you want to talk about people in New Hampshire, or people in Iowa, or people in South Carolina. They would like to know how their lives can be more affordable. Not how you can own Donald Trump. Donald Trump is not running again.”

Now, I don’t totally disagree with Scarborough on the larger point about speaking to affordability, but everyone needs to stop freaking out and clutching their pearls over Newsom’s social media posts.

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Here’s why:

1. Politics Is About Attention

Politics in 2025 is about the ability to grab and hold the public’s attention. In our fractured, algorithm-driven information bubbles, it’s nearly impossible to get your message heard. Most political messaging — speeches, announcements, social media posts, and events — are trees falling in the proverbial forest. To break through, you need to go viral; you need to get people talking. That usually requires doing, saying, or posting things that generate strong reactions on both sides. Outrage powers the algorithms. Milquetoast messaging that pleases everyone and angers no one will go unheard.

You can quibble with some of Newsom’s stylistic choices, but he has people talking. That’s more than most Democrats can say these days.

2. The Language of Politics Is Less Formal Than People Think

The MAGA folks are mad because their whole political identity is about finding reasons to be mad. But Scarborough and others are applying an outdated filter to modern politics. For people of a certain generation (mine), posts on X or Facebook are treated like press releases: if you wouldn’t put it in a press release, you shouldn’t post it. That mindset comes from an era when we were overly precious about language and deviation carried great risk.

But generations raised on social media know how to distinguish between serious statements and shitposting. Most people who don’t work in politics or media full-time get the joke. They know what Newsom is doing, and they either find it funny or they don’t care.

3. Humor Is Good

Yes, these are deadly serious times, but politics doesn’t have to be drudgery. It can be fun. Humor is allowed—and should be encouraged. Too many people are missing the joke here. To borrow a meme recently shared by Newsom’s press office:

Maybe that shouldn’t be surprising. The online Trump flunkies and White House staff are completely humorless, which helps explain why Greg Gutfeld is their patron saint of comedy. Newsom isn’t imitating Trump—he’s satirizing him. The whole point of the posts is to show how absurd Trump’s social media really is. The fact that the Right is freaking out about Newsom while applauding Trump says it all.

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Bottom Line

These are just social posts from an account run by the Governor’s staff. They’re not a model for the Democratic Party or a blueprint for a future presidential campaign. They’re a tactic—a way to grab attention and irritate some of the worst people on the planet.