Gavin Newsom goes viral at European forum with world leaders - Brian Tyler Cohen

[xocetaceans]

4. It is a nice soundbite, but Trump is the symptom of a problem that Newsom seems to have vowed not to address . . .

Newsom Vows to Stop Proposed Billionaire Tax in California

Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was working behind the scenes to block a proposed tax on billionaires’ wealth and was committed to defeating the measure if it reached the ballot.

By Laurel Rosenhall
Reporting from Sacramento

Jan. 13, 2026

Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed on Monday to stop a proposed wealth tax in California, saying that its mere introduction had already hurt the state by driving some billionaires to relocate and take their tax dollars with them.

Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, said in an interview with The New York Times that he had been relentlessly working behind the scenes against the proposal, and that he would fight the measure if it reached the November ballot.

“This will be defeated — there’s no question in my mind,” Mr. Newsom said.

“I’ll do what I have to do to protect the state,” he added.

...

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/newsom-billionaire-tax-california.html

You defeat Trump by punching back, true. But you also have to defeat the cause of symptom Trump which is the tremendous wealth inequality in the US. To do that, addressing the existence of untaxed and unbound billionaires must be done. Newsom seems to be standing against that. Let Newsom keep speaking strongly, but he is not looking like someone to take seriously at the ballot box.

BTC may be right about having no purity tests in the moment, but ignoring the actions of a politician is not wise if one wants to win more than just an election. The point is that Newsom seems not to be authentically on the side of the US citizens but on the side of the billionaires. BTC needs to remember that actions are what counts, not just words. In that, he is unserious. We cannot fight back: politicians can if they so choose: see Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries as examples related to that point. Schumer fought to end the government shutdown which was to protect health insurance subsidies . . . . And that is the point: if Newsom refuses to deal with the problem that is the billionaire class, the necessary fight that the citizens of the US need likely will not be coming through such a "vessel".