President Donald Trump is rebuking California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s overseas diplomacy, warning foreign leaders against treating the Democratic governor as a partner on international policy.
The criticism came after Newsom signed a clean energy agreement with the United Kingdom while appearing at the Munich Security Conference, where he also struck a cooperation pact with Ukraine and delivered sharp attacks on the president’s foreign policy, according to Fox News.
“The U.K.’s got enough trouble without getting involved with Gavin Newscum,” Trump said in an interview, adding that it was “inappropriate for them to be dealing with him.”
Trump also took to social media Monday, calling Newsom and New York Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s comments during the conference an “embarrassment.”
Newsom used the high-profile gathering to present California as what he called a “stable and reliable” alternative to the federal government, telling an international audience the current administration is “temporary” and will be “gone in three years.”
His remarks — delivered in front of foreign officials — fueled speculation about his potential 2028 presidential ambitions, a prospect political observers have discussed for years.
A spokesperson for the governor pushed back on Trump’s comments, saying, “Donald Trump is on his knees for coal and Big Oil, selling out America’s future to China. Governor Newsom will continue to lead in his absence. Foreign leaders are rejecting Trump and choosing California’s vision for the future.”
Newsom also drew attention for criticizing allied governments he believes have accommodated the White House. Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, he said leaders who work with Trump make themselves “look pathetic on the world stage.”
“I can’t take this complicity of people rolling over,” Newsom said. “I mean, handing out crowns, the Nobel prizes that are being given away … it’s just pathetic.”
He repeated a line he previously used at the World Economic Forum, saying he “should have brought a bunch of knee pads” for world leaders he believes have bowed to what he called the president’s “transactional” diplomacy.
The governor’s trip included a memorandum with U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband that his office said could generate nearly $1 billion in investment tied to clean energy. He also announced an agreement with Ukraine’s Lviv region aimed at involving California companies in reconstruction efforts in defense, energy, and digital sectors.
Governors from both parties have long conducted trade missions abroad, and such agreements are typically nonbinding. The State Department has historically supported this type of “subnational diplomacy.”
Still, Newsom’s direct criticism of the president while signing international agreements highlights how domestic political battles are increasingly playing out on the global stage, testing the traditional expectation that the United States speaks with one voice in foreign affairs.
