(C) Daily Kos
This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
Gavin Newsom says Democrats need to ‘organize with more ferocity of focus,’ put GOP ‘on the defense’ [1]
['Daily Kos Staff', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags']
Date: 2022-07-19
But, Newson added, “You have to recognize what you’re up against, and right now, we're up against the ruthlessness of the Republican Party.
"That's not a cheap shot. You see what's happening to all the progress we've made in the 21st century, all of the rights that we in many ways have taken for granted that had been afforded since the ‘60s, are being rolled back in real-time," Newsom said. "This is a totally different moment." He adds that the Democratic Party needs to "wake up with a different mindset" and go beyond “advancing the collective cause.”
"That's where the party comes in. Democrats need the Democratic Party—not the president, not a speaker … the party, the infrastructure, I think, has to organize with more ferocity of focus, more determination to set the agenda, set the course, and put the other party on the defense," Newsom said. “They are dominating the narrative. The facts are not on their side, but they’re dominating the narrative. And in this world, right now, you dominate the narrative. You win. And that’s what I’m worried about,” he said.
When Newsom was asked to describe the GOP narrative, he explained that it’s important, for example, for Americans to know that while California used its stimulus money for college savings accounts for its taxpayers, Alabama used it to open a large prison.
“This is an opportunity for the [Democratic] Party to highlight some of these things,” he said. “I mean, 1,586 books have been banned in this country in the last 12 months … that’s incredible,” Newsom adds.
When asked about the now infamous ad he ran in Florida in early July, Newsom says it was born out of the frustrations of a father of four.
“It was from a son whose mom worked to raise money for aid to the adoption of special kids,” he says. “Someone who works to get people with intellectual disabilities in positions of influence in state government. Who is disgusted by a governor in Florida, Ron DeSantis, for attacking the Special Olympics and threatening them with tens of millions of dollars in fines … Going after the gays, othering other people across the spectrum, and going after vulnerable minorities. I can’t take it … I felt he [DeSantis] needed to be called out,” he adds.
“Democrats have been wanting someone who is willing to proactively throw a punch or two at Republicans, and we haven’t seen much of that from the White House or other Democratic leaders lately. … It was somewhat refreshing,” a top Democratic donor told The Hill about Newsom’s ad.
Newsom then went after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who he said is trying to “eliminate a fundamental right for people regardless of their immigration status to get an education.”
As for gun control, Newsom said he’s proud of legislation that gives Californians the right to sue gunmakers, adding, “I don’t trust the veracity. I don’t trust the character of this Supreme Court.”
You can watch Newsom’s full interview here:
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/7/19/2111348/-Gavin-Newsom-says-Democrats-need-to-organize-with-more-ferocity-of-focus-put-GOP-on-the-defense
Published and (C) by Daily Kos
Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/
