Embattled Governor Gavin Newsom has been criticized for fidgeting and smiling while discussing the horrific Los Angeles fires wiping out entire communities.
Newsom has faced calls to resign over his handling of the crisis, which has left at least 25 dead, destroyed more than 40,000 acres of land and razed an estimated 12,300 structures.
On Tuesday, footage went viral of Newsom fidgeting from side to side and awkwardly appearing to shimmy his shoulders as he responded to questions about the blaze.
He was speaking with Fox in front of the charred remains of burnt out buildings after the fire tore through.
‘I was just talking to Josh Green, the governor down in Hawaii… around speculators coming in, buying up properties and the like so we’re already working with our legal teams,’ he said in the now-viral footage.
Critics spotted the awkward motion and immediately took to social media to question whether it was intentional.
‘What’s with this fairy. He’s been doing this little side to side shimmy and it gives me the yucks,’ one critic wrote on X.
‘Gavin Newsom you’re not just weird, you’re going down over this tragedy.’
Newsom has faced calls to resign over his handling of the crisis, which has left at least 25 dead, destroyed more than 40,000 acres of land and razed an estimated 12,300 structures
Newsom has faced sustained criticism in the week since the fires broke out as residents and voters accuse him of delivering a lackluster response
Another added: ‘When Gavin Newsom is doing his shoulder shimmy, that’s when you know for sure he’s lying 100% and he’s up to no good!’
Newsom has faced sustained criticism in the week since the fires broke out as residents and voters accuse him of delivering a lackluster response.
He has faced calls to resign for the devastating handling of the catastrophe, with everyone from Donald Trump to Hollywood stars slamming his and Mayor Karen Bass‘ lack of leadership.
Mel Gibson was particularly scathing, telling Joe Rogan: ‘I think all our tax dollars probably went to Gavin’s hair gel.’
Saving California, a group that touts itself as a ‘non-partisan coalition of working families, professionals and community advocates’ launched another recall against Newsom this week.
Former advisor to RFK Jr. and Saving California spokesman Randy Economy said Newsom has been ‘woefully unprepared and incompetent’ as the wildfires continue to rage through the city.
‘Leadership is solving problems, not passing the buck and the blame, and Californians can no longer afford to have an empty suit occupying the governorship,’ he said in a statement.
He called the recall a ‘last hope’ to get rid of Newsom before he is term-limited out of office in 2027. They plan to serve the governor with papers in the next two weeks.
A spokesperson for Newsom told Newsweek that the governor is ‘100 percent focused on the fires, ongoing rescue efforts and the recovery process – not politics.’
On Tuesday, footage went viral of Newsom fidgeting from side to side and awkwardly appearing to shimmy as he responded to questions about the blaze
Newsom was criticized after he claimed he does not know how the Los Angeles wildfires happened – while appearing to cast blame on other officials, including Bass.
He also tried to draw in donations for the victims through his own Super PAC. The governor shared a link to californiafirefacts.com – a website created by his campaign committee – claiming it would combat misinformation about the devastating Los Angeles fires.
Separately, the man once touted as a potential Democrat presidential candidate is also copping flak for cutting over $100million to funding earmarked for tackling wildfires
As the campaign against him mounts, critics have dredged up his past as further evidence of his inefficacy as a leader.
The Governor of California publicly stated he would be seeking help for his alcohol issues in 2007, amid the fallout from his relationship with his campaign manager Alex Rourk’s spouse, Ruby Rippey-Tourk.
However, more than a decade went by before he revealed that he had never entered rehab, as had been extensively reported.
The issue has reared its head again amid intense scrutiny of Newsom over his response to the California wildfires.
In 2018, the then-aspiring governor revealed he quit drinking for two years entirely shortly after the affair, but was back to drinking in moderation.
The Palisades Fire – the largest of the three blazes ripping through Los Angeles – ignited on January 7 has scorched 23,713 acres and is only 11 percent contained
Firefighters with the California Task Force 3 Urban Search and Rescue comb through the ruins of a beachfront house in search of victims
An overhead pole camera image shows wildfire damage to the Saint Marks Episcopal Church wiped out in the Eaton fire
He credited his sobriety to the Delancey Street Foundation in San Francisco and its CEO, Mimi Silbert.
‘There’s no rehab. I just stopped,’ he told the Sacramento Bee during his 2018 run for office. ‘There was no treatment, no nothing related to any of that stuff. I stopped because I thought it was a good thing to stop.
‘There is no 12-step (program) here,’ Newsom added of his time with Delancey Street. ‘There are no issues with that. There never was. This was a need to reset.’
Newsom said he decided to give up booze after admitting to an affair with Rippey-Tourk, now Rippey-Gibney, who was his secretary when he was mayor of San Francisco.
At the time, Newsom was also married to Fox news host Kimberly Guilfoyle.
The renewed interest in the controversy comes as Los Angeles residents continue to grapple with devastating wildfires that have destroyed homes and forced widespread evacuations.
As the official death toll from the fires climbs to 25, anxious residents are preparing for more hellish weather conditions which could propel the fires in new directions.
The death toll is also expected to climb, with at least 16 people still missing and 150,000 forced to evacuate their homes.
A firefighter walks past homes destroyed in the Palisades Fire
The Palisades Fire was the first to ignite last Tuesday and has now destroyed more than 24,707 acres
In all, four fires have consumed more than 40,000 acres across the most affluent neighborhoods of LA, with A-list celebrity homes and restaurant hotspots among the 12,300 structures wiped out.
Local fire departments warned that harsher winds and more fire would prevent those under mandatory evacuation orders from returning home to assess the damage.
‘Life-threatening winds and dangerously low humidity are forecast for much of Southern California, creating a significant risk of rapid fire spread,’ the California fire service (CalFire) said in a statement. ‘The winds will cause increased fire activity.’
The Eaton fire which tore through Pasadena at the foot of the mountains has already burned through 14,117 acres, destroyed at least 7,000 structures and cost 17 people their lives.
Mandy Moore’s home was among those charred beyond recognition in the Eaton fire.
And a larger fire which was the first to break out in the ritzy celebrity enclave of Pacific Palisades has destroyed 24,707 acres of land stretching from Santa Monica to Malibu.
Miles Teller, Mel Gibson and Paris Hilton are among A-list celebrities who lost their homes in the inferno.
