– The Washington Times
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been in the headlines this week, but for all the wrong reasons, which analysts say underscores the plight of Democrats as they strategize how to win the next presidential election.
Mr. Newsom, who is arguably the current 2028 Democratic presidential front-runner, debuted a new memoir about his youth with a speaking tour in major cities across the United States.
The telegenic, two-term governor went viral this week, but not for authoring “Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery.”
He drew attention to himself over remarks before an Atlanta audience that critics called condescending and downright offensive. Mr. Newsom told Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who is Black, that “I am like you,” because he scored low on tests and can’t read very well.
The patronizing stumble was followed by an expletive-laden rant he posted on social media when conservatives bashed him over it.
The governor’s spokesman joined in with the foul language, emailing a veteran investigative reporter who authored her own book about Mr. Newsom to “f—- off,” when she asked for medical records that back up the governor’s claim he suffers from dyslexia.
The melee prompted former Republican presidential candidate and media mogul Steve Forbes to warn Team Newsom that deploying vulgarities won’t help Democrats win over the anti-Trump vote they so desperately covet.
“If you claim the moral high ground, act like it. Democrats can’t condemn Donald Trump’s tone while copying his tactics. Trading insults and revenge only deepens the rot in our politics. Gov. Newsom, lead differently,” Mr. Forbes said Wednesday.
As Mr. Newsom’s book launch went off the rails this week, CNN’s polling analyst called the current field of potential Democratic presidential candidates, “a total clown car … a total mess.”
Mr. Newsom has led in several 2028 Democratic presidential polls, but none of the candidates are attracting more than lackluster support.
The latest Echelon Insights survey of voters showed Mr. Newsom with 24% of the vote in a hypothetical Democratic primary matchup against a string of other party favorites.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, the party’s failed 2024 presidential nominee, won 18% of the vote in the poll, followed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with 9% and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg with 8%.
Ms. Harris hasn’t committed to running again, saying in an interview this week on the “Governerds Insider” podcast that she hadn’t decided and adding “I might” when pressed by the interviewer.
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez spent last week pushing back against criticism of her disastrous performance at the Munich Security Congress, where she stumbled over a key foreign policy question: Whether the United States should send troops to defend Taiwan against China.
“We need to have higher standards for Democrats,” Democratic political commentator Ana Kasparian said on online news show, “The Young Turks.”
The rest of the potential Democratic field is barely registering with voters.
They include Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Cory Booker of New Jersey, who are all polling in the low single digits.
Republican pollster Jim McLaughlin said Democrats are falling flat with voters because “they have no idea how to connect with mainstream America.”
Mr. Newsom’s Atlanta remarks were pandering, he said, and show that the party elite is struggling with an addiction to identity politics.
“A Bill Clinton ’New Democrat’ no longer sells in Democratic primaries,” Mr. McLaughlin said, referring to the centrist political approach that helped Mr. Clinton win in 1992.
Mr. Shapiro, who is among the most moderate of potential 2028 hopefuls, isn’t a popular presidential choice in his own state.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday revealed disappointing news for Mr. Shapiro’s presidential aspirations.
Among Pennsylvania voters, only 40% said he’d make a good president, while 43% don’t think he’d make a good president. Another 16% had no opinion on Mr. Shapiro running for higher office, despite his three years as governor.
“Not exactly a ringing endorsement,” Quinnipiac polling analyst Tim Malloy said.
Mr. Newsom’s memoir ranked No. 19 on Amazon this week.
In a CNN interview Monday, the governor sought to distance himself from positions that clearly hurt his party in 2024, including advocating for transgender medical treatments for children and allowing boys to play in girls’ sports.
“The Democratic Party needs to be, dare I say, more culturally normal,” Mr. Newsom said.
Democratic strategist Brad Bannon said there is ample time for candidates to build voter support and enthusiasm which he said will only become easier because Mr. Trump divides the nation.
But for now, he wrote in The Hill, “The contest is a volatile as President Trump’s mood swings.”
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
