California Gov. Gavin Newsom campaigned for South Carolina Democrats and admitted that a 2028 presidential run was part of the thinking behind the trip. He told CNN, “I’d be lying” if he denied 2028 was a factor, even as he said it was further down the list of reasons for his fourth trip to the state in as many years.
Who Gets the Attention
Christale Spain, the state party chair, spent her 50th birthday driving in a van ahead of Newsom’s small motorcade to introduce him at events. She said the $370,000 he raised had helped keep the lights on at party headquarters. That’s the machinery on display here: donors, party offices, motorcades, and a political class trying to keep itself lit while ordinary people are asked to cheer from the seats.
Newsom said he returned because of relationships he has built with state party leadership and because he had campaigned there for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and traveled there on his book tour. South Carolina Democrats, he said, are trying to win enough statehouse seats to break the GOP supermajority. The whole thing sits inside the same electoral cage, with one faction of rulers trying to pry seats from another while the rest of the state is left to watch the contest.
At events in Hardeeville, St. Helena Island, Summerville, West Columbia, Aiken, Columbia and Lancaster, Newsom attacked Trump, calling him an “invasive species.” He described Trump’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives as anti-Black and said “capitalism as we know it isn’t working.” He also said Americans are paying the price for Trump’s crypto-coin profits and upgrades to the Qatari-gifted jet. The language was sharp. The structure underneath it was the same old hierarchy, just with different branding.
What People Said Back
Bradley Taylor, recently retired from the Savannah River nuclear waste site, said, “I was saying to my wife—where are we? Are we not part of the Democratic Party anymore?” He said he wasn’t convinced about Newsom but was watching former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for his “human connection.” His wife, Jacqueline Taylor, a registered nurse, said, “Watching him troll Trump — that kind of turns me on.” After hearing Newsom, she said, “I am so thankful for him. If you want to gerrymander and cheat… you’ve got to fight fire with fire.” She also said Newsom made her think of her grandchildren, including a truck driver facing high diesel costs and another in the Army.
Bill Clyburn, the 85-year-old longtime state representative and a cousin of the state’s power broker congressman, Jim, said, “He’s just saying things that touch us.” If Newsom runs for president, Clyburn said, “He can do about as well as expected.” Asked what that meant, Clyburn chuckled. Zyon Khalifa, a 25-year-old congressional candidate, said, “You don’t hear him trying to code-switch,” and added, “Instead of trying to sugarcoat it, say it in some way that all audiences would be OK with, he’s just saying what’s happening.”
Jermaine Johnson, the Democratic nominee for governor, had Newsom headline a fundraiser and then join him for a fireside chat at Allen University. By Newsom’s last event in Lancaster, a higher proportion of Black faces were in the seats. Newsom said, “I don’t need big crowds, I don’t need to give a speech. I love this connection, I love the human connection, I love the granularity. I like reading between the lines, I like these small groups of people that we’re meeting. I learn a lot.”
The Party Machine Keeps Moving
The article said Newsom’s appeal to Black voters is already driving internal deliberations as advisers look at Black support among potential primary opponents ranging from Harris to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff. Newsom said he wasn’t worried about the crowd makeup and said, “You come on the weekends, completely different,” adding, “By the way, last time we were here was almost exclusively African-American audience.”
Christale Spain asked attendees to shout out other politicians they’d like to see come through when a traffic accident delayed Newsom’s remarks by an hour. Ossoff and Pete Buttigieg were mentioned, along with Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. The article said bootleg vendors sold $5 “Newsom 2028” buttons and $30 “Gavin 2028” hats. Keri Whitaker, a recent retiree, said, “Of course I’d look at all the options, but I think he’s viable.”
Newsom said he will be out of office in January for the first time in a 30-year run from San Francisco supervisor to mayor to lieutenant governor to governor. He said he has had to start figuring out health insurance for his family. State Sen. Margie Bright Matthews said, “I thought he was just a tall glass of sweet tea,” and added, “I realized he’s more than just a good-looking face. He’s got moxie.”
Newsom also revisited his late-night June 2025 phone call with Trump as immigration enforcement officers faced off with protesters in Los Angeles. He said Trump brought up the 2024 race against Harris and claimed to have won their debate, saying it was “a four against one” setup with the hosts, cameramen and Harris set against Trump. White House communications director Steven Cheung responded, “The only liar here is Gavin who continues to fail his state and gaslight the public instead of helping his state that is suffering under his radical policies. The president called Gavin Newsom to tell him to get his ass in gear, but Gavin decided to disgustingly side with the violent rioters instead of protecting Californians. He is a loser of the highest order and continues to beclown himself on a daily basis.”
What They Call Reform
Newsom said he had submitted his contemporaneous notes of the call to House Oversight Committee chair Rep. Jim Comer of Kentucky and that they are part of his defamation lawsuit against Fox News, which is in the discovery phase. He said, “I’m in this for the long haul. They can say whatever they want. These facts are well established in the court of law and in Congress, and not a word has been said to refute those assertions and facts. And I’ve done them on the penalty of perjury.” An aide declined to provide the notes to CNN, and Comer did not respond to a request for comment.
Protesters held signs reading “Barking up the Wrong Palmetto Tree” and “Bless Your Heart, Gavin,” and GOP gubernatorial nominee Alan Wilson posted “Don’t California My South Carolina.” Newsom said, “Minimum wage, universal health care, subsidized childcare, lowering cost of prescription drugs, making sure families are supported or getting Medicaid — I imagine those are not popular, according to (Wilson), which is kind of remarkable.” The promises sound familiar. The stage is still theirs.