Newsom drops Epstein BOMB on Trump

Governor Newsom argues that Donald Trump's efforts to prevent the public release of certain Jeffrey Epstein files strongly imply his personal involvement in significant wrongdoing. He dismisses Trump's claim of protecting 'friends,' suggesting any such protection would be tied to economic interests. Newsom asserts that Trump's actions are part of a broader strategy to shield himself, indicating 'something big' in the unreleased files that would be profoundly damaging to him.

Newsom states, 'The guy who appears more than anyone else in the Epstein files... the president himself must appear and testify.' He adds, 'He has done everything he could to stop these things from being made public. So by definition, there are things in there that imply that he is part of the problem.' He also references Marjorie Taylor Greene's comment about Trump not wanting 'friends to get hurt,' which Newsom interprets as an economic interest. (02:19, 05:45, 07:25)

Newsom condemns Trump's foreign policy approach, particularly recent military actions in the Middle East, as lacking a coherent plan or consistent rationale. He highlights Trump's increased military airstrikes compared to previous administrations, even while campaigning against such interventions. Newsom attributes these actions to a combination of factors, including the influence of figures like Netanyahu, Trump's domestic political weakness, and his desire to be the 'star,' regardless of the consequences.

Newsom notes, 'Trump didn't do any of that [building a coalition or rationale for war]... he's had more military air strikes than Biden did in his entire four years in his first year.' He points to the 'cluelessness in terms of the foreign policy but the profound consequences' including regional war, rising oil prices, and military casualties. He speculates on motivations like Netanyahu's political survival and Trump's 'position of weakness domestically, his desire to always be the star.' (09:33, 11:02, 11:54)

Newsom expresses alarm over the proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, particularly given the pro-Trump Ellison family's involvement. He warns that this consolidation would give significant control over major news outlets like CNN and CBS to entities aligned with Trump, potentially compromising journalistic objectivity and free expression. He suggests this could lead to a 'chill' in reporting and a shift in media narratives to favor Trump's agenda.

Newsom states, 'The Ellison family, the pro-Trump Ellison family would consolidate even more of their hold on the entertainment industry and specifically on the news because it's not just CBS... but now we've got CNN, which would be under the thumb of the Ellison family.' He adds, 'Do you think for a second Trump is not going through the list of prime time candidates to replace the current prime time lineup at CNN? I mean, I was just at CNN a couple days ago... You felt the chill there.' (21:03, 22:46)

Newsom identifies key areas for intervention to bring film production back to Los Angeles and California. He emphasizes the need to streamline the complex local permitting process, which currently creates significant hurdles compared to other states. He also advocates for expanding state tax credits to include 'above the line' talent (writers, directors, actors) to compete with international production hubs like the UK and Canada, and encourages writers to create place-based scripts set in California.

Newsom suggests, 'We need to substantially streamline all of the local permitting, which is a huge issue.' He also discusses 'the debate about above the line as it relates to the tax credit. The ability to get folks from overseas, particularly compete with the UK, you have to start looking above the line.' He adds, 'advocating to writers to write scripts that are placebased which is a critical component of this.' (24:26, 24:51, 25:20)