Axelrod criticizes Newsom's 'self-puffery' at Davos

Democratic strategist David Axelrod criticized California Gov. Gavin Newsom for the “self-puffery” in his remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. “Newsom is a whip-smart, charismatic pol. His critiques of Trump are right. But this ‘Why can’t people just be as courageous as ME?’ routine is tedious,” Axelrod said in a post on the social platform X. “Haven’t we seen enough self-puffery in our leaders?” he continued. Newsom, in an interview with Semafor Thursday, touted his aggressive approach to pushing back on President Trump’s agenda and rhetoric, as he blamed the administration for canceling an event he was supposed to headline the previous day at USA House in Davos. USA House is a venue backed by the U.S. government and other corporate sponsors, but it’s unclear what role the administration had in denying Newsom entry to the forum, preventing him from speaking at the event. “Part of my approach has been a little more aggressive than perhaps a lot of American politicians,” Newsom said on Thursday. “So, is it surprising the Trump administration didn’t like my commentary and wanted to make sure that I was not allowed to speak? No. It’s consistent with this administration and their authoritarian tendencies,” the governor added. Newsom also criticized American institutions and private companies for “selling out to this administration, selling out our values, selling out our future, selling out what makes America great.” “Society becomes how we behave. We are our behaviors. We’re not bystanders in this world. The world we’re experiencing happened on our watch,” Newsom said, noting the global corporate executives are “complicit, in some respects” in what he perceives to be wrongdoing by the administration. He condemned global business and political leaders for not speaking out against the president, saying Trump, in the 2020 election, “tried to light democracy on fire and then pardoned everyone that participated in that.” “Is anyone paying attention to what the hell is going on in the United States of America?” Newsom continued. “So my state of mind is a little different, perhaps, than many others. I won’t be complicit at this moment. I won’t, I can’t, I can’t look my kids in the eyes.” The California governor, a potential 2028 presidential contender, said he thinks he’s in a position to appear before the crowd with “moral authority.” “Look, give me a category and California outperforms — the fourth largest economy in the world. And so we can punch above our weight. We can come here with formal authority and a little moral authority. And I tell you, we need a little moral authority in our body politic in the United States of America today,” Newsom said. Axelrod’s post on Thursday came in response to another Democratic commentator, who shared the clip and added, “This is a masterclass from Newsom on Trump at Davos. He completely destroys Donald and his many failures while simultaneously uplifting California and Democratic accomplishments.” “Boy, I’ll tell you what. I have a completely different cut on this,” Axelrod said in his post, before elaborating on his position. The White House did not directly address accusations related to the event cancellation but criticized Newsom in a statement to The Hill. “No one in Davos knows who third-rate governor Newscum is or why he is frolicking around Switzerland instead of fixing the many problems he created in California,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement.