Gavin Newsom and Steve Bannon found at least one place where they agreed in the controversial podcast chat: the liberal California governor is responsible for Elon Musk‘s rise to power.
The pair traded blows in a 56-minute chat for Newsom’s new podcast, one that has drawn outrage from the governor’s party for platforming the controversial Donald Trump ally.
However, at times, the polar opposites were largely collegial and even laughed at one another’s jokes.
Newsom at one point tried to hit home Bannon’s apparent distaste for ‘First Buddy’ Musk, who has donated hundreds of millions to Trump and since become head of the budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency.
When he tried to nail Bannon on any friction between the two and wondering what Musk’s ‘endgame’ was, the former White House advisor turned it back at Newsom.
Bannon responded: ‘Well, you know him, you guys created him!’
Instead of firing back, Newsom agreed with Bannon’s point, citing everything California had done for the Tesla and SpaceX CEO.
‘In many respects, California did. Our regulatory process and our subsidies to create this market, you’re 100% right,’ Newsom said.
Gavin Newsom and Steve Bannon found at least one place where they agreed in the controversial podcast chat: the liberal California governor is responsible for Elon Musk ‘s rise to power
Newsom at one point tried to hit home Bannon’s apparent distaste for ‘First Buddy’ Musk, who has donated hundreds of millions to Trump and since become head of the budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency
Bannon added on, point out that Musk ‘left Canada to go to California.’
Newsom didn’t disagree again, pointing out that after everything California did, the federal government wrote Musk a check.
‘He’s been the beneficiary of billions and billions and billions of dollars of subsidies.’
The governor that asked him what he wanted Musk to do next as part of DOGE, if Bannon wants the ‘First Buddy’ to run programs like the FAA.
‘I want the deconstruction of the administrative state. The better angels of Elon, that engineer’s brain, I think they kicked in when he saw our strategy,’ Bannon said.
‘He sees that we have an apparatus and the administrative state is kind of anti-democratic.’
Bannon said that the ‘Deep State’ would ignore the desires of any Democrat, including Newsom, if they became president and remain the true rulers of America.
Again, Newsom agreed, when Bannon had a spontaneous thought for what Musk could do next.
When he tried to nail Bannon on any friction between the two and wondering what Musk’s ‘endgame’ was, the former White House advisor turned it back at Newsom
Bannon said of Newsom: ‘Well, you know him, you guys created him!’
‘We should invite Elon, since you’re personal friends with these guys, Elon ought to take a California DOGE!’
Newsom argued that California already had such a plan that had saved the state hundreds of billions of dollars.
‘Let Elon come out and verify that. I think for the nation it’d be good and it would be good for you,’ Bannon said.
Eventually, Newsom did get to ask Bannon about whether Musk was ‘scared’ of Bannon after comments that included the War Room host calling Musk a ‘parasite.’
‘I’m just a mick that yells into a microphone,’ he joked.
This time, Newsom hit back: ‘He’s marginally attacked you back. I’m curious your private thoughts on that. He’s a little scared of you, isn’t he?’
Again, Bannon demured.
The chat was the latest episode of Newsom’s new ‘This is Gavin Newsom’ podcast, which has sought to bridge a gap and invite conservatives to chat with the famously progressive governor.
The chat was the latest episode of Newsom’s new ‘This is Gavin Newsom’ podcast, which has sought to bridge a gap and invite conservatives to chat with the famously progressive governor and has progressives outraged
Much like the first episode with Charlie Kirk, the talk with Bannon drew utter outrage from liberals that he would even talk to the Trump ally.
Anti-Trump ex-Republican Congressman posted a furious video in response to the interview.
‘I am in shock at the stupidity of @GavinNewsom inviting Steve Bannon on his podcast. Many of us on the right sacrificed careers to fight Bannon, and Newsom is trying to make a career and a presidential run by building him up. Unforgivable and insane.’
‘STOP GIVING NAZIS A PLATFORM,’ wrote another Dem-aligned X account.
‘On behalf of Democrats who don’t want Gavin Newsom to be our nominee in 2028 (or ever), I want to thank whoever has been advising him to have Charlie Kirk and Steve Bannon on his new podcast. You’re doing the lord’s work,’ said Adam Carlson.
Phillip Germain added: ‘Steve Bannon told Gavin Newsom that Trump won the 2020 election and there was absolutely no pushback. What are we doing here?’
In the interview with TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, he distance himself from Democrats’ belief that transgender women should be playing women’s sports.
Kirk asked him: ‘Would you say no men in female sports?’
‘Well, I think it’s an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that,’ Newsom responded. ‘It is an issue of fairness. It’s deeply unfair.’
Kirk challenged him to call out the case of AB Hernandez, a high school trans athlete dominating women’s long jump and triple jump in California.
Newsom avoided that case but said he agreed with Kirk’s overall stance that it was unfair for women to compete with an athlete born a man.
But he went on to say that it was important to ensure that vulnerable communities were protected.
Newsom is widely expected to run for president in 2028. And he has shown a willingness to engage with conservatives and appear on Fox News as he dissects the wreckage of Democrats’ 2024 election campaign.
But supporters and even his own staff will be shocked at how much they agreed on an issue that was weaponized bu Donald Trump and his supporters to show how liberal Democrats had lost the plot.
