Newsom to Host Democratic Governors in Los Angeles

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks in Los Angeles on Sept. 25, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

All of the nation’s Democratic governors are meeting this weekend in Los Angeles, as California Gov. Gavin Newsom welcomes his counterparts for their annual winter meeting of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA).

Newsom said he would position the state to lead the opposition against many of President-elect Trump’s anticipated policy overhauls and regulatory reforms upon his return to the White House on Jan. 20.

The meeting will include Democratic governors from 23 states, four U.S. territories, and the Mayor of the District of Columbia  Muriel Bowser. The current chair of the DGA is Laura Kelly, the Governor of Kansas.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who is dealing with a statewide migrant crisis and the Wednesday assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan, made the cross-country trip. Meanwhile, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who has called for changes to the city’s sanctuary policies, appears to be ready to work with Trump on the issue of illegal immigration in recent weeks.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who ran as Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate last month, will also be in attendance.

Newsom, who is in his second term as governor of the most populous state, convened a special session of the California legislature this week.

“While the state is prepared to lead efforts to challenge any unlawful actions by the federal government, Governor Newsom is committed to working with President-elect Trump wherever there is common ground to improve the lives of nearly 40 million Californians,” the governor’s office said in a statement.

“We will work with the incoming administration and we want President Trump to succeed in serving all Americans.”

Trump’s appointments have rattled Washington in recent weeks, as he seeks to change the way the bureaucracy operates in the capital.

Elon Musk, the California-based billionaire industrialist who has vowed to help Trump shake up the city by serving as co-commissioner of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Thursday.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), a staunch Trump ally, announced Friday that she intends to introduce the DOGE Acts to “freeze federal hiring & federal salaries” while shrinking the size of the government.

Trump, who said Newsom is trying to stop “all of the great things that can be done to ‘Make California Great Again,’” in a Truth Social post, has signaled that he is also willing to work with any lawmaker across the aisle, as long as they are helping the country.

While Newsom was in Los Angeles welcoming the other governors in his party, the California State Capitol was evacuated Friday morning in response to “an email threat,” according to a post on X from the California Highway Patrol’s (CHP) Capitol Protection Section.

“At the direction of Joint Rules, the Capitol and Swing Space have been temporarily evacuated while California Highway Patrol officers search for any threats,” said the CHP.

James Gallagher, the Republican minority leader in the California State Assembly, told NTD News, The Epoch Times’ sister media, that his team was doing fine after the scare.

“As directed by authorities, my team at the Capitol evacuated safely. Thank you to the California Highway Patrol, Capitol security, and local law enforcement for working around the clock to keep us safe,” said Gallagher.

From NTD News