Jim Geraghty of National Review Online assesses the California governor’s actions during the recent wildfire emergency.
Large swaths of the second-most populous city in the U.S. have burnt to the ground, an area equivalent to 62 square miles or roughly the size of Washington, D.C.; as of this writing, the fires have destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 structures, killed at least 24 people and more than 150,000 people are under evacuation orders.
And California governor Gavin Newsom seems to think he’s in a public communications crisis. On Friday, during a briefing with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, Newsom lamented, “I ask you, we’ve got to deal with this misinformation. There were hurricane-force winds of mis- and disinformation, lies. People want to divide this country, and — and we’re going to have to address that as well. And it breaks my heart, as people are suffering and struggling, that we’re up against those hurricane force — forces as well.”
The same day, Newsom taped a half-hour appearance on Pod Save America, the podcast hosted by former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau, where Newsom again complained about Donald Trump spreading disinformation. …
… Shortly after appearing on that podcast, Newsom unveiled “California Fire Facts,” which feels like a rerun of the 2011-era Obama playbook for “Attack Watch.”
On the site, Newsom’s staff accuses the usual suspects — Fox News, Elon Musk, and random people on X — of lying. As you might expect, the governor’s defenses play fast and loose with the facts. …
… Gavin Newsom Shouldn’t Be Where He Is.
I don’t just mean that he shouldn’t be governor of California, although I think the performance of the state government over the last six years proved that point — repeatedly. I mean Newsom really shouldn’t be one of the best-known figures in his party, a regular magazine cover boy, the subject of glowing profile after profile, and so frequently mentioned as a potential Democratic presidential candidate. He’s terrible at this “governing” thing, and he’s been terrible at it for a long time.