Gavin Newsom Pulverizes DeSantis’s Loopy Lies About California Crime

California Governor Gavin Newsom is hitting back at Ron DeSantis’s exaggerated claims about California crime.

During the Republican presidential debate Wednesday night, which was held in Simi Valley, California, DeSantis claimed that he had heard several stories pointing to a crime increase in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

“Just being in Southern California over the last couple of days, my wife and I have met three people who have been mugged on the street,” he said. 

After the debate, Newsom quickly fired back and invited DeSantis to be real about “crime rates in his own backyard.”

“This may be an opportunity, I appreciate, to look up ‘Jacksonville, Florida,’ and he may want to familiarize himself with ‘Miami, Florida’ and his homicide rates, which are 100 percent higher than San Francisco,” Newsom said.

DeSantis has been known to exaggerate crime rates in blue states while making factually inaccurate statements about the reality of crime in Florida.

It’s hard to do a proper comparison of crime between California and Florida, in part because of the latter’s flawed reporting methods. But in 2022, San Francisco had 56 homicides, while Jacksonville had 154 and Miami had 132, according to the Major Cities Police Violent Crime Report. And in general, violent crime—including the murder rate—is decreasing nationwide.

Newsom also took a swing at the Republican narrative that crime runs rampant in liberal states.

“I think people are getting a little exhausted by the fact that we’re focusing on New York’s crime rate and not the crime in these other Republican-led cities in Republican states,” Newsom said.

“Crime is a real issue, but I find the hypocrisy, the unwillingness to be honest with the American people, and the unwillingness to take responsibility—Ron DeSantis, take responsibility for his own crime rates in his own major cities. I find that curious, not surprising,” he added, calling out DeSantis directly.

Republicans’ own witness in their impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden completely destroyed their claims multiple times on Thursday.

The House GOP held its first hearing on Biden’s alleged corruption. Republicans have insisted for months that the president is guilty of criminal wrongdoing, but they have yet to produce any actual evidence of their claims.

As one of their first witnesses, Republicans called on Jonathan Turley, a conservative legal scholar who previously served as a Justice Department tax attorney. Turley was set to act as a content witness to help analyze the Biden family’s business dealings—but even he admitted there’s not enough evidence.

“In fact, I do not believe that the current evidence would support articles of an impeachment,” he told the hearing.

Turley had previously expressed this belief in written testimony submitted ahead of the hearing. “I do not believe that the evidence currently meets the standard of a high crime and misdemeanor needed for an article of impeachment,” he wrote.

Turley also said in his written statement that he did believe it was “warranted” for the House to investigate potential connections between Biden and his son Hunter’s business dealings. But Republicans have been doing just that for months, and they still haven’t found proof linking the president to Hunter Biden’s work.

A second Republican witness, forensic accountant Bruce Dubinsky, shared a similar conclusion. “I am not here today to even suggest that there was corruption, fraud, or any wrongdoing,” he told Congress.

“In my opinion, more information needs to be gathered and assessed before I would make such an assessment.”

As Oversight Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin pointed out, “If the Republicans had a smoking gun, or even a dripping water pistol, they would be presenting it today.”

“But they’ve got nothing on Joe Biden,” he said in opening remarks.

This story has been updated.

Donald Trump made a big show of appealing to union autoworkers at a campaign event in Michigan, but it turns out that none may have even attended.

Trump opted to give a speech Wednesday night at Drake Enterprises, a nonunion factory, instead of participating in the Republican debate. Drake management had invited him to appear, and the United Auto Workers union—which is currently on strike—does not represent the Drake workforce. About 400 to 500 people attended the speech, even though Drake only employs about 150, The Detroit News reported.

It’s unclear how many union workers, or even autoworkers, attended Trump’s speech. One person held a sign that said “union members for Trump” but told reporter Craig Mauger she wasn’t in the union. Another person held a sign that said “auto workers for Trump” but admitted he wasn’t an autoworker.

Undeterred, Trump said he supports the ongoing UAW strike for fair wages but warned that the “current negotiations don’t mean as much as you think.”

The real danger, he insisted, is electric vehicles. He described the transition from gas engines to electric as “a transition to hell” and said the auto industry “is being assassinated.”

His speech stands in stark contrast to the approach of Joe Biden, who on Tuesday became the first sitting U.S. president to ever join a picket line.

Trump is no stranger to filling a room with fake supporters. Former Trump aide Corey Lewandowski admitted in 2021 that they had paid actors to attend Trump’s first campaign launch in 2015.

A lot of deplorable things were said during the Republican debate on Wednesday night, but this comment from Republican candidate Tim Scott may take the cake.

During the debate Scott argued that welfare assistance was harder than slavery for Black Americans.

“Black families survived slavery!” he exclaimed. “We survived poll taxes and literacy tests.”

“We survived discrimination being woven into the laws of our country,” he added, in a line that for a moment sounded like he might actually be acknowledging systemic racism.

“What was hard to survive was Johnson’s Great Society, where they decided to put money—where they decided to take the Black father out of the household to get a check in the mail.”

Johnson’s Great Society, launched in 1964, was one of the most significant federal social welfare programs in U.S. history. It greatly expanded welfare policy by writing Medicare and Medicaid into U.S. law, increasing Social Security benefits, and generally expanding assistance to the elderly and the poor.

That Scott had harsher words for welfare assistance than for slavery is not just an overt ahistorical reach. Frankly, it’s embarrassing.

Nikki Haley finally snapped at Vivek Ramaswamy during the Republican debate Wednesday night.

Ramaswamy warned about the dangers of social media but also said he was trying to connect with younger voters through TikTok. Ramaswamy joined TikTok two weeks ago, just days after he referred to the app as “digital fentanyl.”

Haley tore into him for his flip—and for his talking points in general. “Honestly, every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say,” she said.

She described TikTok as “one of the most dangerous social media apps” and called Ramaswamy untrustworthy.

But before you give her too much credit: Haley’s attack on Ramaswamy is particularly ironic considering the highly complimentary blurb she wrote for his book Woke, Inc., which was published in 2021.

Republicans love to hate on TikTok, warning that the Chinese-owned app is a threat to national security and data privacy. But the app is still hugely popular among young people. Restricting TikTok in any way could actually backfire on lawmakers and alienate younger voters.

It’s a big night for DeSantis, and he’s putting on a smile—a creepy facsimile of one, anyway.

At the second Republican presidential debate on Wednesday, Ron Desantis once again tried to smile normally and once again failed.

Viewers watching the debate couldn’t help but notice that when speaking about vetoing “bloating spending bills,” DeSantis plastered a faltering smile on his face, which quickly fell into a disturbed grimace.

DeSantis had the exact same problem during the first Republican debate last month, when his failed attempt to smile quickly became a viral meme.

DeSantis has demonstrated a slew of robotic behavior, from short-circuiting before the press, to seeming like a stock photo model in a series of pictures from 2015 meant to communicate that he was just a regular human man.

At this point, not every viewer is buying that the awkward DeSantis can even hold a conversation.

Joe Biden used Republicans’ own words Wednesday to take aim at their party’s 2024 front-runner.

Trump once again skipped the Republican debate, but his presence was still felt. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis finally found an ounce of spine and called Trump out for not attending the debate.

“He owes it to you to defend his record, where they added $7.8 trillion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation that we have now,” DeSantis said to applause.

Biden had a simple and hilarious response.

Republicans repeatedly blame Biden for the high debt and inflation. They claim that some of his signature policies, such as to provide financial aid during the pandemic or the Build Back Better Act, are the main contributors.

In reality, Republicans raised the debt ceiling multiple times under Trump. And inflation is high in part because Trump made the U.S. economy weaker.

Joe Biden aired an ad on Fox News just 10 minutes before the beginning of Wednesday’s Republican presidential debate.

Just moments before the debate, the pro-Biden political ad targeted what was sure to be a central issue on the debate stage: jobs.

The ad clearly stated all that Trump failed to do for workers and the U.S. economy

“He says he stands with auto workers, but as president, Donald Trump passed tax breaks for his rich friends while automakers shuttered their plants, and Michigan lost manufacturing jobs,” the ad said directly to Republican voters tuning in to watch the debate.

Trump is noticeably absent from the debate.

The ad also highlighted what Biden has done for the economy, including increasing wages, emphasizing that he has followed through on his commitment to support workers. 

“Joe Biden doesn’t just talk, he delivers,” the ad said. On Tuesday, Biden visited striking auto workers on the picket line in Michigan, a first for a sitting president.

Donald Trump argued that he didn’t fraudulently inflate the value of his real estate holdings because he could sell them to Saudi buyers at any price he chooses.

The revelation comes in one small footnote in a ruling Tuesday that Trump and his company had committed business fraud for years. The lawsuit, brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, found that Trump had dramatically inflated his net worth, by as much as $3.6 billion in one year. She accused Trump of lying about the value of various real estate assets.

But in a deposition, Trump “seems to imply that the numbers cannot be inflated because he could find a ‘buyer from Saudi Arabia’ to pay any price he suggests,” New York state Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron wrote in his ruling.

“This statement may suggest influence buying more than savvy investing,” he added in a footnote.

The lawsuit alleges that Trump claimed his Trump Tower apartment in Manhattan was three times its actual size and worth $327 million. No New York City apartment has ever sold for that much, James said.

He also valued Mar-a-Lago at $739 million. In reality, it’s worth about a tenth of that amount. Trump’s valuation was based on the property’s potential for residential development, but the terms of its deed prevent the land from ever being used that way.

Trump and his allies have always had troubling connections with Saudi Arabia. In 2019, Trump administration officials revealed to Congress that they transferred nuclear technology to Riyadh at least twice, after the killing of U.S. resident and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. These incidents occurred despite U.S. intelligence concluding that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, referred to as MBS, hired the hit men who killed Khashoggi.

Trump has also hosted LIV Golf tournaments at his clubs. The Saudi-backed golf league is widely seen as an attempt to sportswash the country’s human rights record.

Beyond Trump, his son-in-law Jared Kushner launched an investment fund after they left the White House. One of the first investments Kushner received was $2 billion from a Saudi sovereign wealth fund. Last week, MBS suggested that money would stay with Kushner if Trump were reelected in 2024.

Mary Trump marked her uncle Donald Trump being found liable for fraud by listing all of his historic accomplishments.

New York state Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron ruled Tuesday that Donald Trump had committed business fraud and ordered all his New York business certificates be canceled. This makes it nearly impossible to do business in New York and could effectively kill the Trump Organization as it exists today.

Mary Trump, who has contributed to The New Republic, took to X (formerly Twitter) shortly afterward to point out just how significant the ruling is. Donald Trump is now the first former president to be impeached twice, accused of inciting an insurrection, indicted, found liable for sexual assault, and now found liable for fraud.

“For the victims of Donald, this is finally some vindication. It’s been a long time coming, but after everything Donald has put this country through, WE HAVE PREVAILED,” she wrote.

“Let’s take a minute to celebrate—we’ve all earned it.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Donald Trump and the Trump Organization in September 2022 for business fraud. She is seeking a penalty of $250 million. Engoron issued a partial summary judgment on Tuesday that determined the thrust of James’s case is true and that a trial is not necessary to find Trump liable.

Engoron ruled that the business certificates for “any entity controlled or beneficially owned” by Trump, his sons Donald Jr. and Eric, longtime Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg, and Trump Organization executive Jeffrey McConney must be canceled.

He gave the men 10 days to come up with three potential independent candidates to handle the dissolution of all related businesses. Engoron also fined Trump’s lawyers $7,500 each for repeating arguments he had previously dismissed.

Donald Trump has denied his business practices were fraudulent and, after being found liable, tried to blame James and Engoron for being politically biased.

“It is a POLITICALLY MOTIVATED WITCH HUNT by a Racist Attorney General, and a Deranged, Trump Hating Judge,” he wrote on Truth Social. “It is ELECTION INTERFERENCE at a level never seen before.”

Says the man indicted on both the state and federal level for trying to overturn the 2020 election.