Gavin Newsom’s not-so-subtle moves to secure a spot on the 2028 presidential ticket aren’t sitting well with the Democratic Party’s whisperer.
David Axelrod, the veteran strategist behind Barack Obama’s campaigns and a longtime voice of the left’s private musings, is taking aim at what he sees as the California governor’s performative efforts to position himself for the top spot.
“This ‘Why can’t people just be as courageous as ME?’ routine is tedious,” Axelrod, 70, wrote on X this week. “Haven’t we seen enough self-puffery in our leaders?”
The California Democrat, 58, has effectively appointed himself Donald Trump’s troller-in-chief since the president returned to office, frequently needling Trump online and, at times, attempting to steal his spotlight in person.
Just last week, Newsom appeared alongside Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he urged allies to “stand united” against the president, 79. Newsom later watched as Trump addressed political and business leaders before dismissing the speech as “boring, and at times boorish.”
“Part of my approach has been a little more aggressive than perhaps a lot of American politicians,” Newsom said Thursday in an interview with Semafor.
But while Newsom has succeeded in provoking the Trump administration and capturing Democrats’ attention, Axelrod has repeatedly questioned whether the governor can earn the broader electorate’s trust.
In an interview with Axios, Axelrod acknowledged that Newsom is “enormously talented” but cautioned that “Authenticity is an essential quality in any presidential candidate. And after Trump, I believe humility will be, too,” the former Obama adviser told Axios.
Axelrod also took issue with Newsom’s switch-up last year, when he stated that he believes transgender athletes present an “issue of fairness” in women’s sports—despite years of being a prominent advocate for the LGBTQ community.
“The obvious question would be: ‘Well, you’ve been governor of California for six years, you were lieutenant governor for many years before that, when did you have this epiphany?’ And the answer is, when he found that the Republicans could weaponize the issue,” Axelrod told CNN.
While several polls have placed Newsom at the front of the Democratic field, Axelrod’s harsh criticism could pose a risk to the governor’s Oval Office aspirations.
Axelrod has long cultivated a reputation as the party’s bluntest truth-teller. In 2022, he was among the first to publicly question whether President Joe Biden was too old to seek reelection—remarks that reportedly sent the White House into a frenzy and culminated in Biden privately calling him a p–k, according to Politico.
He was also proven correct in 2016, when he warned that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s campaign was “hard to inspire voters.”
Axelrod has since predicted that former vice president Kamala Harris—whose 2024 presidential bid he heavily criticized—will reenter the fray in 2028, though he previously told CNN, “it’s not going to be easy for her.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to Axelrod and representatives for Newsom for comment.
The post Dem Insider Has Brutal Prediction for Newsom 2028’s Odds appeared first on The Daily Beast.
