Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), who has mixed it up with prominent conservatives on his podcast and seemingly moderated his views, called the Democratic brand “toxic” on Friday. He pointed to a poll that showed his party has a 27% favorability rating.
The California governor is considered a top contender for the 2028 presidential election, and joined the list of notable Democrats warning that the party needs to change in order to be competitive in future elections.
“The Democratic brand is toxic right now,” he said during an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher.
The Democratic Party’s 27% favorability rating is its lowest in at least a generation.
After the 2024 election, Newsom launched his podcast, “This is Gavin Newsom,” and hosted guests such as Charlie Kirk, Steve Bannon, and former vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN).
Newsom suggested that he’s had some “controversial figures” on his podcast, but said he feels he has to have them on because, as Maher says, “they won.”
“These guys are crushing us,” he said. “The Democratic brand is toxic right now… it’s one thing to make noise but you also have to make sense, and with this podcast and having the opportunity to dialogue with people I disagree with, it’s an opportunity to try to find common ground and not take cheap shots.”
The governor said Democrats tend to be more “judgmental” and stuck in an echo chamber as he lamented “cancel culture.”
“We talk down to people,” he said. “We talk past people.”
Newsom echoed sentiment voiced by Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) earlier this year. The senator also referred to his party as “toxic.”
Fetterman criticized Democrats for “shaming and scolding and talking down to people and telling them, ‘Hey, I know better than you,’ or you’re dopes, or you’re a bro, or you’re ignorant or, ‘how can you be this dumb? … And then, by the way, they’re fascists.”
In a Friday interview, Fetterman warned that Democrats could be in the “permanent minority” if they don’t make serious changes.
“We really got our asses kicked in, and especially in the Senate, we could have been left a gigantic, smoking hole in the ground,” he said of the 2024 election. “We could have easily lost Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin, and we could be staring down, 56-44. And if we don’t get our shit together, then we are going to be in a permanent minority.”
The Democratic identity crisis has been ongoing since they lost both chambers of Congress and the White House in November.
Newsom said in his conversation with Walz that uniting against Trump isn’t enough. “This is an existential moment, and our unity against Trump is not increasing our trust; it’s not helping the Democratic brand,” he said.
Walz, another Democrat considered to be a top 2028 contender, has also criticized his party following the 2024 election.
TRACKING WHAT DOGE IS DOING ACROSS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Earlier this month, he said that he wished Democrats had “rolled the dice” more during the 2024 election.
“We shouldn’t have been playing this thing so safe,” he said.