California Gov. Gavin Newsom defended Vice President Kamala Harris and her policies as she was set to accept the 2024 nomination for president at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago late Thursday night.
Newsom, who’s known Harris for almost 30 years, delivered California’s delegates to Harris on Tuesday to ceremoniously put her over the top for the Democratic nomination.
Newsom told Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier on “Special Report” that he’ll be out on the campaign trail “plenty” for both Harris and her running mate Tim Walz in the lead-up to the November election.
Baier asked Newsom about a RealClearPolitics poll that found a majority of Americans believe the direction of the country is on the “wrong track.”
“We’ve been polarized and traumatized. The last three and a half years have been difficult. The last five, six, seven years,” Newsom said, pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Trump administration.
“We had 14.8% unemployment in April of 2020. We lost 154,000 manufacturing jobs during the Trump years. We’re just coming out of this recession; we’re finally taming inflation.”
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“You hear what you’re saying? You’re erasing the last three and a half years,” Baier pressed.
“No, I’m saying I think it’s more directional. I think it’s been a challenging time for this country for many, many years, even before Biden-Harris were elected,” said Newsom.
President Joe Biden stands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and first lady Jill Biden during the first day of the Democratic National Convention, Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
He added there’s a “fresh air of progress” within the Democratic Party compared to a “stale air of normalcy” and a “stale air of the past represented in Donald Trump.”
Baier pressed Newsom on Harris’ lack of media interviews and lack of policy substance on her campaign website, as well as criticism from people who say she should be offering more “meat on the bones.”
“This is a convention,” Newsom responded. “This is about why and what. Karl Rove said it best today. In an op-ed, he says there’s plenty of time for policy details…we have ceded [a] tremendous amount of economic opportunity across this country. And she has the opportunity tonight to turn the page on the past, to your point, legitimate point, and talk about a compelling future where everyone feels good.”
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“But I mean, how about an interview? One interview? One thing?” asked Baier.
“How about getting through the convention,” said Newsom. “How about a little grace under the circumstances, this remarkable moment in U.S. history.”
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois, United States on August 19, 2024. (Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Baier then pressed the former San Francisco mayor on Harris’ record as a prosecutor in California and whether it would “stick.”
“[If] you remember her primary for president, she was attacked from the left for being too tough, for being a prosecutor, for having a prosecutorial mindset. So, look, I mean, all these things, this is all fair game. But at the end of the day, she’s got a record of accomplishment as being part of the Biden-Harris administration,” said Newsom.
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“We’ve seen inflation tamed down to 2.9%. No one’s denying the inflation scars. No one’s denied what’s happened around the world, with a few exceptions around the globe as it relates to the impacts of COVID in supply chains, a war in Ukraine, and the impact that had on the global economy. But no country has done better, and no investments have been made comparable anywhere in the world as profound and meaningful as the industrial policies that have been ceded by the Biden-Harris administration.”