Marc Novicoff and Jonathan Chait: “A key source of Newsom’s appeal is the belief that he’s electable. It’s easy to see why the party’s voters have such a favorable view of his political skills. The California governor has combined an ideological flexibility—lately embracing both the “abundance agenda” and dialogues with conservatives—with a relentless mockery of President Trump. His new persona as a fighting moderate, a Democrat in tune with the country’s shifting desires and ruthless toward the man at the top, deftly speaks to the needs of a party desperate to regain the White House.”
“But Newsom has a problem: He has been a California politician for decades, and has held the state’s governorship since 2019. During his tenure, the state has been a laboratory for some of the Democratic Party’s most politically fraught policies and instincts, which has left it less affordable and more culturally radical than it used to be. His record not only raises pressing questions about how effectively he could govern as president; it also provides opponents an endless buffet of vulnerabilities across social and economic issues.”
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