California Gov. Gavin Newsom will sit for an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity next week, the first time he has done so in more than a decade.
The interview is going to take place at the governor’s mansion in Sacramento on June 12 and will be aired on that day during Hannity’s 9 p.m. nightly program, Fox News said.
The two will discuss topics such as immigration, current issues in California, the economy, the 2024 presidential election, the current state of democratic politics, and Newsom’s latest proposal for a constitutional amendment to address what he called a national “gun violence crisis.”
On Thursday, the Democrat governor proposed a 28th amendment that he said would permanently enshrine “four broadly supported gun safety principles” into the U.S. Constitution. These four principles include raising the minimum age for gun purchases to 21, mandating universal background checks, creating a “reasonable waiting period” for all gun purchases, and prohibiting the civilian purchase of “assault weapons.”
The 28th Amendment will also affirm Congress, states, and local governments can enact additional “common-sense” gun restrictions, according to Newsom’s office.
Newsom has been a harsh critic of Fox News, especially when it comes to the way the cable news network covers crimes involving guns.
In January, following a shooting that left 11 people dead and nine others injured in Monterey Park, a mostly Asian city east of Los Angeles, Newsom called Fox News’ coverage of the tragedy “a disgrace.”
Newsom then unleashed a rant about what he said was the message from Fox News whenever a deadly shooting makes national headlines.
“‘It’s not the right time, not the right time, not the right time.’ Rinse, repeat. Not the right time, Sandy Hook, not the right time, rinse, repeat. Uvalde, ... Rinse, repeat,” Newsom said. “Not a damn thing they do. And we know it. And we allow them to get away with that.”
The upcoming interview is also expected to cover Newsom’s feud with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose office has recently confirmed that it did charter private jets to fly illegal immigrants to California.
“Now, who’s ultimately accountable and responsible?” Newsom said on Tuesday in an interview with NBC News, speaking of those sending migrant planes to his proclaimed sanctuary state. “I mean, the buck should stop with Ron DeSantis and the games he’s playing. But it’s the folks on the front lines that were doing the dirty work. And that’s ultimately what we have to determine, is where the culpability lands and resides.”
In response to Newsom’s criticisms, a spokesperson for the Florida Division of Emergency Management said the passengers voluntarily accepted the one-way plane ticket to the Golden State.
The spokesperson, Amelia Johnson, also released a video as proof that the illegal immigrants boarding those planes were not “kidnapped,” nor were they treated poorly.
“As you can see from this video, Florida’s voluntary relocation is precisely that—voluntary,” Johnson wrote in a statement. “Through verbal and written consent, these volunteers indicated they wanted to go to California. A contractor was present and ensured they made it safely to a [third]-party NGO. The specific NGO, Catholic Charities, is used and funded by the federal government.”
“From left-leaning mayors in El Paso, Texas, and Denver, Colorado, the relocation of those illegally crossing the United States border is not new. But suddenly, when Florida sends illegal aliens to a sanctuary city, it’s false imprisonment and kidnapping,” she added.
