Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Liberal YouTubers
Related: About this forumGavin Newsom goes viral at European forum with world leaders - Brian Tyler Cohen
Gavin Newsom, urges world leadersparticularly Europeansto stop appeasing Trump and instead respond with strength and unity. He argues that Trump is not a traditional leader but a "bully" who only respects power, and that appeasement only makes him more aggressive.
Newsom emphasizes that Trump is "unmed," "unhinged," and "lawless," and that the only effective response is to impose leverage through economic and financial tools. He warns that continued weakness will empower adversaries like China and Russia, ultimately harming the United States. The message stresses urgency, calling for immediate collective action to counter Trump's destabilizing influence, even if it means sacrificing short-term comfort.
4 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Gavin Newsom goes viral at European forum with world leaders - Brian Tyler Cohen (Original Post)
TexasTowelie
7 hrs ago
OP
markie
(23,911 posts)1. thank you
Gavin Newsom for speaking out
StarryNite
(11,984 posts)2. Brian is spot on.
If something doesn't change soon there will be no 2028 election.
Escurumbele
(4,030 posts)3. Well done Brian, very well put.
This video must be circulated.
xocetaceans
(4,350 posts)4. It is a nice soundbite, but Trump is the symptom of a problem that Newsom seems to have vowed not to address . . .
Newsom Vows to Stop Proposed Billionaire Tax in California
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was working behind the scenes to block a proposed tax on billionaires wealth and was committed to defeating the measure if it reached the ballot.
By Laurel Rosenhall
Reporting from Sacramento
Jan. 13, 2026
Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed on Monday to stop a proposed wealth tax in California, saying that its mere introduction had already hurt the state by driving some billionaires to relocate and take their tax dollars with them.
Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, said in an interview with The New York Times that he had been relentlessly working behind the scenes against the proposal, and that he would fight the measure if it reached the November ballot.
This will be defeated theres no question in my mind, Mr. Newsom said.
Ill do what I have to do to protect the state, he added.
...
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/newsom-billionaire-tax-california.html
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was working behind the scenes to block a proposed tax on billionaires wealth and was committed to defeating the measure if it reached the ballot.
By Laurel Rosenhall
Reporting from Sacramento
Jan. 13, 2026
Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed on Monday to stop a proposed wealth tax in California, saying that its mere introduction had already hurt the state by driving some billionaires to relocate and take their tax dollars with them.
Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, said in an interview with The New York Times that he had been relentlessly working behind the scenes against the proposal, and that he would fight the measure if it reached the November ballot.
This will be defeated theres no question in my mind, Mr. Newsom said.
Ill do what I have to do to protect the state, he added.
...
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/newsom-billionaire-tax-california.html
You defeat Trump by punching back, true. But you also have to defeat the cause of symptom Trump which is the tremendous wealth inequality in the US. To do that, addressing the existence of untaxed and unbound billionaires must be done. Newsom seems to be standing against that. Let Newsom keep speaking strongly, but he is not looking like someone to take seriously at the ballot box.
BTC may be right about having no purity tests in the moment, but ignoring the actions of a politician is not wise if one wants to win more than just an election. The point is that Newsom seems not to be authentically on the side of the US citizens but on the side of the billionaires. BTC needs to remember that actions are what counts, not just words. In that, he is unserious. We cannot fight back: politicians can if they so choose: see Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries as examples related to that point. Schumer fought to end the government shutdown which was to protect health insurance subsidies . . . . And that is the point: if Newsom refuses to deal with the problem that is the billionaire class, the necessary fight that the citizens of the US need likely will not be coming through such a "vessel".