California Governor Gavin Newsom mocks Republican impeachment attempt as ‘student government’

See Dana Bash’s full interview with Governor Gavin Newsom at 9 p.m. ET.

CNN
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California Governor Gavin Newsom mocked House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s decision to launch an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, calling the Republican majority’s actions “student government” in a interview with CNN.

Still, Newsom told CNN’s Dana Bash on Monday that he doesn’t like using family connections to make money. Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, has made millions of dollars in countries like Ukraine and China, while his father played a significant role in the Obama administration’s foreign policy efforts.

“If that’s the new standard, there are a lot of people in a lot of industries, not just politics, where people have family members and relationships that they’re trying to take advantage of and get a little bit of influence and advantages in this regard. This is not unique,” ​​Newsom said.

“I don’t like it, any more than you like it or other people, I imagine, like it. We want to see a lot less of that,” he said. “But an impeachment inquiry? Leave me alone.”

He also said President Biden was “taking the right approach” by not interfering in a federal investigation into his son, who was indicted by special prosecutor David Weiss for a gun he purchased in 2018, the first time in US history that the Department of Justice has been indicted. charged the child of a sitting president.

Republicans, Newsom said derisively, are “concerned about gun crime, which is remarkable.”

McCarthy’s decision to open an impeachment inquiry, which he said would allow further investigation into “allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption,” came even though investigations by The House Republican Party has yet to provide direct evidence that the president benefited financially from Hunter. Biden’s career abroad.

“It’s a joke. Ready, shoot, aim,” Newsom said. “I mean, it’s a perversity of what the founding fathers always designed and imagined. So if it’s the best what they can do, give me a break.

The California governor, who has been the subject of speculation about 2024 as he has visited Republican-led states in recent months and agreed to a Fox News debate with Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, insisted he would not run for the White House himself.

“The answer is no,” Newsom said. “No ambiguity.”

He also said he hadn’t considered whether he would make a good president. “I’m not that guy. That’s simply not the case,” he said.

His comments come at a difficult time for Biden, who faces concerns from some Democrats over his age and Harris’ performance as vice president. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently did not directly answer the question of whether Harris should remain on the Democratic ticket in 2024.

Newsom said “of course” Harris, a fellow California Democrat, should be the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee.

“The Biden-Harris administration – a masterclass in performance, bipartisan deals on infrastructure, bipartisan deals on guns and the debt ceiling, on CHIPS and the Science Act,” a- he declared. “I mean, by definition, if I think this administration of the last two, two and a half years, has been one of the most remarkable administrations of the last few decades, and she’s a member of this administration, she can claim some deserves it. a lot of this success. The answer is absolutely,” he said.

Newsom said Democrats need to “get out of this kind of navel-gazing about Joe Biden, and let’s get on with it.”

“Let’s get on the train. This train has left the proverbial station,” he said.

Newsom criticized former President Donald Trump’s comments broadcast Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” in which the former president claimed some Democrats support the right to abortion up until and after birth .

“It’s a duck. It’s a political thing. This is totally absurd,” he said. “It’s a false flag. This is where they must go to get out of the chaos they have created, because they do not believe in the fundamental choice and freedom of women.”

Newsom said he and many other Democrats support abortion rights until it is viable, or about 24 weeks.

However, he added, the government should not be involved, and examples of exceptions to that threshold are “so extreme, so rare, when you literally have viability issues that are deeply personal and painful.”

“In these extremely rare and personal circumstances, something I absolutely believe in, Donald Trump should not make this decision. I shouldn’t make this decision,” he said.

Newsom said he supports members of the United Auto Workers union who are striking, saying the United States must close its “fundamental wealth gap.”

“I fully support the striking workers,” he said, while refusing to comment on the details of the negotiations.

He was less willing to discuss the Hollywood writers’ strike, saying he was in a “different position” because of the formal authority and mobilizing ability he has as governor of California.

“I am encouraged by the conversations this past weekend. I’m not going to exaggerate this. And I’m encouraged that they will meet again later this week,” he said.

He said the post-coronavirus pandemic economic environment, marked by income disparities, questions about the future role of artificial intelligence and changing business models, has created a “perfect mix of stress” for workers .

This led to “the rise of populist movements on the left and right.” People are frustrated and angry. They think things are rigged,” Newsom said.

“You see this more generally, as workers exert more force due to more fear and stress about the world we live in,” he said. “And I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I think fundamentally it’s a good thing. I believe in collective bargaining. I believe that working families, the working poor, do better when they organize together.