Liberals Attack Gavin Newsom Over Interview With Steve Bannon: ‘Platforming Authoritarianism’
Screenshots via This Is Gavin Newsom (L)/Steve Bannon’s War Room (R)
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) faced the wrath of his fellow liberals on Wednesday after Steve Bannon was announced as the latest guest on his podcast.
Newsom’s podcast faced backlash before most could even listen to it, as his mere choice in guest merited objections from other progressives. Newsom’s newly-launched This Is Gavin Newsom features Newsom speaking with conservative figures about modern politics and the state of the two major parties in light of President Donald Trump’s election victory. Guests so far have included Charlie Kirk and Michael Savage.
Bannon, a former advisor to Trump, was a step too far for many.
Former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger called it “unforgivable and insane” and accused Newsom of “platforming authoritarianism.”
“I am in shock at the stupidity of [Gavin Newsom] 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,” Kinzinger wrote on X.
Kinzinger, a vocal Trump critic, served on the congressional subcommittee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Bannon repeatedly refused to speak to this committee, ignoring subpoenas and eventually serving months behind bars.
In a video, Kinzinger called Kirk “one of the bad guys,” but said his appearance on Newsom’s show wasn’t enough to get “extremely outraged about.”
“Bannon is the author of this chaos we’re seeing right now. Bannon is the one who says you need to flood the zone with shit,” he said. “Bannon is the one who has basically authored where we are and what Donald Trump wants and because Gavin Newsom’s going to run for president and he thinks he’s going to be this healer, he brings on this nationalist.”
Others were equally as shocked, and accused Newsom of using MAGA-friendly figures to move his image closer to the middle in anticipation of a bid for the White House.
Newsom announced his podcast last month and he argued it was centered on trying to understand the MAGA movement and its success.
“We already know what our disagreements are with the MAGA movement. I want to understand what the motivations are, the legitimacy of those motivations, and just really understand where people are coming from,” he said.
