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California Gov. Gavin Newsom taunted President Donald Trump during a late-night appearance on Tuesday, predicting that the November elections would be a wipeout for the Republican Party because of Trump.
On "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," host Jimmy Kimmel said Democratic leaders were not fighting back hard enough against Trump and pointed to Newsom's push for Proposition 50 as an example of the kind of aggressive response Democratic voters want to see.
Newsom, a likely 2028 presidential candidate, said Democrats had to change tactics against what he called a "historically unpopular" president and predicted Trump would drag down GOP candidates in the midterms.
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"Trump is a historic president - historically unpopular," Newsom said. "He's going to get crushed, shellacked, in the midterms. He is. He's toast. And he knows it."
"Gavin Newsom should spend less time auditioning for late-night television and more time fixing the disaster he's created in California," RNC National press secretary Kiersten Pels told Fox News Digital. "While Newsom trades jokes with Hollywood elites, President Trump is delivering strength abroad and results for the American people at home. If Democrats want the midterms to be a referendum on Gavin Newsom-style policies, Republicans welcome that fight."
The White House did not immediately return Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Newsom made a similar bold election prediction in an interview with MS NOW host Jen Psaki last week.
"The presidency as we know it will de facto end this November when we get the gavel back and Speaker Jeffries becomes the next speaker - as long as we remain vigilant," he said during the Feb. 25 interview.
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"Why else did he call Greg Abbott, saying he's 'entitled' to five seats in a mid-decade redistricting?" Newsom asked during the Tuesday appearance on Kimmel, referring to the Trump-backed push to redraw Texas' congressional map to help Republicans pick up as many as five House seats.
Newsom said Democrats in California responded by moving to redraw congressional boundaries through Proposition 50. The ballot initiative, passed by voters in November, could flip about five Republican-held House seats to Democrats in the midterms.
"Instead, we decided to redraw the lines and, over a 90-day period, raised $120 million, and we kicked his a-- in November and redrew the lines," he taunted.
Newsom warned he was not exaggerating about the stakes, citing the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and warning of further attempts to shape election rules by the administration.
"This is not hyperbolic. You saw what happened on Jan. 6, tried to wreck the country, light democracy on fire, dialed up for 11-12,000 votes in Fulton County. That's exactly what he's doing all across the United States," the governor said.
"Not just as it relates to redistricting, trying to nationalize the election, trying to take those voting rolls and purge voters, decide who can vote, who cannot," Newsom added. "Ask the folks in Fulton County what he's just done. It's happening in plain sight."
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Newsom's warning came as he promoted his new book, "Young Man in a Hurry," fueling more 2028 speculation.
Newsom has acknowledged that he's mulling a presidential bid, telling CBS News last year he would "seriously consider" a run following the 2026 midterms and that he'd be "lying" if he said otherwise.
Fox News' Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
