California Governor Gavin Newsom is power hungry enough that he’s willing to sell out his own communications team for political points.
Newsom disavowed his far-Left Democratic organization Thursday, and told conservative commentator Ben Shapiro that his team calling ICE operations “state-sponsored terrorism” was false and unfair to federal immigration officers.
The walkback came during a tense interview on Newsom’s podcast “This is Gavin Newsom,” where Shapiro confronted the governor about a January 8 social media post from Newsom’s official press office account that described the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis as simply “STATE. SPONSORED. TERRORISM.”
“Your press office tweeted out that it was state-sponsored terrorism, which, I mean governor, I just have to ask you about that. That sort of thing makes our politics worse, and it does,” Shapiro said.
Newsom responded simply: “Yeah.”
“Our ICE officers obviously are not terrorists. A tragic situation is not state-sponsored terrorism,” Shapiro continued.
“Yeah, I think that’s fair,” Newsom agreed.
During the interview, Newsom also said he disagreed with calls to abolish ICE.
“I disagreed when I think a candidate for president by the name of Harris said that in the last campaign. I remember being on Chris Hayes hours later saying I think that’s a mistake. So absolutely,” Newsom said.
Take a look —
Shapiro: Your press office said it was "state-sponsored terrorism."
Newsom: "Yeah…"
Shapiro: "Our ICE officers obviously are not terrorists…"
Newsom: "Yeah, I think that's fair." pic.twitter.com/ltjehS6ZVJ
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) January 16, 2026
The exchange quickly went viral on social media. Democrats accused Newsom of selling out his own communications staff by contradicting the official position of his office.
The controversial tweet remained live on the Governor Newsom Press Office account as of Thursday evening, despite Newsom disavowing it —
STATE. SPONSORED. TERRORISM.
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) January 8, 2026
Newsom’s taxpayer-funded press office account has gained notoriety for issuing inflammatory statements against President Donald Trump and his administration.
The account once implied that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller was like a member of Hitler’s SS.
The original “state-sponsored terrorism” post came in response to the January 7 fatal shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security said Good was attempting to run over law enforcement officers when Ross shot her, authorities said.
Violent riots have gripped the streets of Minneapolis and other cities since the shooting, with protesters blocking streets and attacking federal agents.
Critics have pounced on the contradiction between Newsom’s public backstabbing and his office’s continued defense of the inflammatory rhetoric.
“One can’t help but be reminded of another glaring example of Newsom’s hypocrisy, and again, it was on his podcast, This Is Gavin Newsom,” wrote RedState’s Bob Hoge.