Newsom Defends Biden’s Record, Rejects Rumors He’ll Jump in the Race

During an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom of California firmly pushed back on the idea he will replace President Biden as the Democratic presidential nominee and passionately defended Biden’s record.

When moderator Kristen Welker asked whether it was “responsible for Democrats” to keep the president as their party frontrunner, Governor Newsom immediately launched into a monologue reminding her and the audience about Biden’s accomplishments.

“I revere his record,” Newsom said. “What he has done in three years has been a masterclass. Close to 15 million jobs [created], that’s eight times more than the last three Republican presidents combined. The economy is booming, inflation is cooling, we have American manufacturing coming back home all because of Biden’s wisdom, because of his temperance, his capacity to lead in a bipartisan manner—which is an underrepresented point—and so I have great confidence moving forward.”

One of Biden’s most high profile and effective surrogates, Newsom continued to emphasize the president’s achievements as Welker appealed to voter perception, suggesting that he and other Democrats must “make the case” to connect the two.

Welker also asked Newsom about recent reporting indicating “anxious Democrats reached out to top Biden donors to ask, ‘when is Gavin getting in?’”

A visibly annoyed Newsom reiterated that he was “celebrating the extraordinary accomplishments of the Biden-Harris administration, making the case that we need to make.” 

“It’s all idle chatter, it’s a sideshow,” said a visibly annoyed Newsom. “I think what Democrats need to do is worry less, do more, continue to overperform as we have, continue to win, make the case.”

When Welker pressed him if he was ruling out a surprise presidential bid, Newsom concluded, “A hundred percent! It’s not even an interesting conversation. By the way, I think it’s a damning conversation frankly the other side wants us to have.”

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