California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is stressing the importance of responding accordingly when it comes to President Donald Trump’s war on mail-in voting and social media fact-checking.
During an appearance on “The View” Friday, Newsom was asked if he thinks Twitter should fact-check the president.
The governor recalled how the debacle started as he noted Trump’s initial accusation targeting him for the state’s ballot applications.
“It was a tweet attacking me and falsely claiming. It’s not even controversial because it’s flagrantly untrue that we have sent out ballots to every living Californian regardless of how they got here,” Newsom said. “That’s just untrue. So it was an easy one to fact check.”
While he did acknowledge the difference in how privatized companies are operated, he did agree that it is a “slippery slope.”
“But I agree. Look, you get down that slippery slope. It was inevitable how the president would respond to that. This is a fight he wants, not only with Twitter but a fight on mail-in ballots.”
Newsom added, “And in so many ways, we’re perfect sheep in terms of how we react oftentimes to what the president is trying to do.”
See Newsom’s remarks below:
Gov. @GavinNewsom says Pres. Trump’s executive order targeting Twitter and other social media giants “is a fight he wants not only with Twitter, but a fight on mail-in ballots.”
— The View (@TheView) May 29, 2020
“It’s a deflecting tool but it’s also a mobilizing tool for his base.” https://t.co/EKC6X1PRzj pic.twitter.com/bo5R3cd7UM
Newsom went on to suggest Trump’s tactics are part of his political agenda to deflect from the actual problems plaguing the United States.
“He knows exactly what he’s trying to do. It’s a reason he’s President of the United States and its a deflecting tool,” he said. “But its also a mobilizing tool for his base.”
The California governor also stressed the importance of caution going forward, saying, “So we have to walk through this next process of how we respond with eyes wide open and that in mind.”
As the coronavirus death toll surpassed 100,000, the president momentarily acknowledged the fallen as he and administration trained their focus on various other political issues.
Over the last several days, the president has focused on the following: China, the World Health Organization, re-election concerns, Obamagate, mail-in voting, the fact-check battle with Twitter, verbal attacks on female Democratic leaders, networks approval polls, criticism of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s mask-wearing, tweets about MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough, and the recent Minneapolis protests.
Many of Trump’s latest tweets have garnered lots of attention from social media and the press. Despite the ongoing pandemic, the public health risk is why House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is advocating for mass mail-in voting, which has evolved into a politicized issue.
