California Governor Gavin Newsom has ruffled some feathers and made people jittery with his actions. He has spent the past week turning his official social media accounts into what looks like a parody account of President Donald Trump. There has been a stream of memes, clapbacks, and all-caps declarations.
All these are eerily similar to the style used by Donald Trump. His new approach has garnered all kinds of reactions from people. It has amused supporters, irritated critics, and on Friday, it finally managed to provoke Fox News host Dana Perino into an unusually sharp rebuke.
Dana Perino is a former White House press secretary who was employed under George W. Bush. During her segment, The Five, she scolded Newsom and tried to call him out for what she described as reckless, unserious behaviour.
“You have to stop it with the Twitter thing,” she said bluntly. She then added that if she were Newsom’s wife, she would tell him, “You are making a fool of yourself. Stop it.”
Perino went on to argue that Newsom is the governor of the most populous state in the country and right now is a figure many see as a future presidential contender. All this warrants a certain behaviour from him, and Newsom should be carrying himself with more seriousness.
Perino: You have to stop at with the Twitter thing. If I were his wife, I would say you are making a fool of yourself, stop it… He’s got a big job as governor of California but if he wants an even bigger job, he has to be a little more serious. pic.twitter.com/Vi8eifx4pb
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 18, 2025
“He’s got a big job as governor of California,” she continued. “If you want to be president someday, you’ve got to be a little more serious.”
Now, Gavin Newsom’s press office has been on fire with their tweets and comebacks. If anyone expected them to pull back, they were wrong. Rather than pulling back and cutting it short, Newsom’s press team seized on Perino’s remarks.
They turned them into another meme. On X, his official press office reposted the clip with the caption: “ALMOST A WEEK IN AND THEY STILL DON’T GET IT.”
ALMOST A WEEK IN AND THEY STILL DON’T GET IT https://t.co/xACH6zSfXX
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) August 19, 2025
The mocking tone has been consistent with much of Newsom’s recent content. Gavin Newsom is giving back the same energy that the Trump administration and his surrogates give in the media. Rather than being poised and keeping themselves on a higher pedestal, it is probably the first time a democrat is playing the game Trump plays.
Newsom’s account has taunted conservative commentators like Tomi Lahren and mocked former South Dakota governor Kristi Noem as “Commander Cosplay.” They have even targeted Trump allies such as JD Vance with parody memes.
Posts have also ridiculed Trump himself. These included his behaviour after his summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
“TRUMP JUST FLED THE PODIUM … TOTAL LOW ENERGY … ENJOY YOUR FLIGHT HOME, DONALD — YOU’RE PUTIN’S PROBLEM NOW. I’M AMERICA’S SOLUTION,” one
post read in full caps.
TRUMP JUST FLED THE PODIUM WITH PUTIN — NO QUESTIONS, NOTHING! TOTAL LOW ENERGY. THE MAN LOOKED LIKE HE’D JUST EATEN 3 BUCKETS OF KFC WITH VLAD. IS HE AFRAID THE PRESS WILL ASK ABOUT ME??? (AMERICA’S FAVORITE GOVERNOR) AND THE FACT I “STOLE THE CAMERAS” THIS WEEK WITH “THE MAPS”?…
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) August 15, 2025
Newsom has defended his approach and has called it satire. In many interviews, he has argued that Trump and his allies had been warping important political discussions and conversations with their outrageous takes and distraction methods. They have trolled and made fun of everyone who has shown concern regarding Trump’s mental health. Newsom has proved that meeting them on their own turf was both necessary and effective.
“If you have issues with what I’m putting out, you sure as hell should have concerns with what he’s putting out as president,” Newsom said while pointing to Trump’s history of inflammatory social media use.
Forget the southern border, the strongest wall Trump’s ever built is his bronzer line. https://t.co/5Rd32YE4rp pic.twitter.com/I9vYhS7Z6H
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) August 19, 2025
Gov. Newsom appears to be committed to his high-volume, meme-driven strategy. Perino’s televised frustration has only added fuel to the online firestorm. It has given his press office more material to work with.
What is clear is that in the age of social media politics, even a governor’s press office can become a battleground. Newsom is determined to fight on Trump’s turf, no matter how uncomfortable it makes his critics.
