Republicans Accuse Newsom of Racist Comments; Newsom Pushes Back

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, made comments about reading and his SAT score that some are characterizing as racist and condescending to the crowd at his Atlanta, GA, book tour event. 

What He Said: Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens asked Newsom about his experience with dyslexia, which he describes in his memoir. In response, Newsom said, "I'm not trying to impress you. I'm just trying to impress upon you, I'm like you. I'm no better than you. I'm a 960 SAT guy. And I'm not trying to offend anyone trying to act all there if you got a 940. You've never seen me read a speech, because I cannot read a speech. Maybe the wrong business to be in. I haven't overcome dyslexia; I'm living with it." 

Newsom and Code-Switching: A growing narrative amongst conservatives says that Newsom often lies or code-switches depending on his audience. Conservative influencer Laura Powell shared a video of Newsom saying he read Amie Parnes and Jonathan Allen's book in less than two hours, implying that his statement about having trouble reading was a lie. Townhall (Right bias) wrote, "Gavin Newsom Continues to Lie About His Privileged Childhood."

Accusations of Racism: The conservative X account @EndWokeness posted a shortened clip of Newsom captioned with a revised and shortened version of his statement, "I am like you. I'm a 960 SAT guy. I can't read." It also said he was speaking to a "black crowd." USA Today (Lean Left) included a response from conservative rapper Nicki Minaj, who said, "His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can't read." It also shared comments from Sen. Tim Scott (SC-R), who said, "Black Americans aren't your low bar," and Georgia Secretary of State candidate Vernon Jones (R), who said, "How racist is that? You can never be black, but you are a racist scumbag." Both Newsweek (Center) and USA Today noted that videos posted on social media show a diverse crowd with a significant number of white attendees.

Defense from Liberals: USA Today highlighted the Atlanta mayor's defense of Newsom. Dickens said, "Take it from someone who was actually in the chair asking the questions: context matters more than a headline. The conversation around his new book included him speaking about his own academic struggles, including not doing well on the SAT. That wasn't an attack on anyone. It was a moment of vulnerability about his own journey."

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