Newsom Comments On School Incident
In the wake of a tragedy as raw and horrifying as the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, the expectation—if not the moral imperative—is for leaders to stand down, let facts emerge, and show some semblance of restraint. But Gavin Newsom, the ever-political governor of California, couldn't even wait for the candle wax to cool before firing off a hot take aimed directly at Republicans.
On Wednesday morning, 23-year-old Robert “Robin” Westman—a biological male who identified as a transgender woman—opened fire through the stained glass windows of a church filled with children, killing two and injuring 17 more. Among the wounded: fourteen students. Police later confirmed that Westman had posted a twisted set of videos, including a manifesto, before carrying out the attack. Scrawled across the shooter’s gun magazines were phrases like “Kill Donald Trump,” “Israel must fall,” and “For the children.” This was premeditated. This was ideological. And this was personal.
But to Gavin Newsom, none of that seemed relevant.
Within hours, Newsom jumped onto social media and fired off a partisan broadside: “We cannot even make it through the first week of school without mass shootings. And the GOP will continue to do absolutely nothing while our kids are being gunned down. This is sick.”
What is sick is that you can’t make it until they even find out how many poor victims there are before you start pathetically trying to politicize these murders. https://t.co/nnnh3uKZM4
— Joe Nosef (@joenosef) August 27, 2025
Let’s pause here. The shooting happened in Minnesota, one of the most left-leaning states in the nation when it comes to gun control. The shooter was a Minnesota resident, not someone who crossed state lines from a red state. The suspect had a documented personal history with the school. And the killer left behind ideological breadcrumbs that pointed toward far-left extremism.
And yet, Newsom—who governs a state facing its own crises, including homelessness, crime, and an exodus of businesses and families—saw fit to turn this into a political attack against Republicans in a state he doesn’t govern and a tragedy he doesn’t understand.
This is politics at its most cynical. It’s not about solving problems. It’s about scoring points while the sirens are still wailing. The facts of this case don’t fit the narrative, so Newsom ignores them entirely. No mention of the shooter’s identity. No discussion of mental health or ideological radicalization. No consideration of the local context. Just a generic, prefab talking point about the GOP, pumped out before the crime scene was even cold.
Social media users were quick to call him out for it. “This man is politics and self above all else,” one said. Another put it more bluntly: “You can’t even wait until they find out how many poor victims there are before you start pathetically trying to politicize these murders.”
This moment should have been about compassion, mourning, and truth. Instead, it became yet another chance for Gavin Newsom to chase national relevance on the backs of grieving families in a state not his own.