Just as the city of Los Angeles is battling one of the biggest fires ever, President-elect Donald Trump showed his concern for the citizens of the city by condemning the state democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, blaming him for the fires.
On Wednesday, Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, and said,” Governor Gavin Newscum is trying to KILL our Nation’s beautiful California”. Trump went on to state that Gov. Newsom is trying to make the state Trump-Proof, and it’s time to “Make California Great Again.” He also blamed various policy decisions and immigrants for the fire.
BREAKING 🚨 President @realDonaldTrump crowns @GavinNewsom as “Newscum” amid horrific wildfires in California: pic.twitter.com/VYhvREly2s
— Toria Brooke (@realtoriabrooke) January 8, 2025
The Internet was quick to notice the new nickname “Newscum” Trump debuted for governor. Social media was flooded with reactions and responses to the first nickname Trump gave to any of his opponents in the new year.
Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom have never seen eye to eye on any matter and have always been in the ring over immigration, climate and environmental policies, fire prevention, and electric vehicles. Trump has called Newsom weak and ineffective in the past every time California raged with wildfires.
This time again, Trump seized the opportunity to blame the governor for simultaneous wildfires and the death of five citizens. Trump further slammed the democratic administration for gross negligence and incompetence. He also brought up the topic of water diversion to wetlands that caused fire hydrants to run dry.
Governor Gavin Newsom has responded to these allegations and the new nickname, calling out the President-elect for politicizing the national tragedy. Newsom also took a dig at Trump and said, “No politics, no hand-wringing, kissing of the feet. Emergency proclamation is being drafted as we speak.” He praised President Biden for his emergency proclamation for these fires as well.
“No politics, no hand-wringing, kissing of the feet. … Emergency proclamation is being drafted as we speak.”
— California Gov. Gavin Newsom appears to take a shot at Trump as he thanks Biden for drafting an emergency proclamation amid devastating wildfire in Pacific Palisades pic.twitter.com/67HU2ADNlZ
— The Recount (@therecount) January 8, 2025
When asked for a response to the nickname, the Governor said it was a very familiar moniker to him. He was probably in seventh or eighth grade when he was first bullied with this name. He then called a 78-year-old man behaving like a pre-teen an embarrassment.
Aside from Newsom, Desi Lydic of Daily Show also talked about Trump calling the governor Gavin Newscum. Needless to say, the host of the late-night “news” show was not impressed with it and had some crass remarks of her own.
With the second term of the Trump presidency upon us, the new nicknames for many of Trump’s opponents are inevitable. All through his three presidential campaigns and his first term as President, Trump has bestowed a new moniker on anyone who dared stand against him.
These range from childish to downright bullying. Some of the unfortunate nicknames Trump ever came up with are- ‘Crooked Hillary’ for Hillary Clinton, ‘Sleepy Joe’ for President Biden, ‘The Rocket Man’ for North Korean President Kim Jong Un, and Tampon Tim for Tim Walz.