Gavin Newsom's Wife Faces Criticism Over Resurfaced Clip

A clip of Governor Gavin Newsom's (D-CA) wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, speaking publicly about the death of her sister resurfaced last week, sparking criticism from the political right.

For Context: Siebel was discussing a tragedy she experienced at the age of seven, when she was involved in a fatal golf cart accident that ultimately led to the death of her 8-year-old sister.

The Clip: The clip, from a 2016 interview during the Wisdom 2.0 conference in San Francisco, highlighted Siebel sharing what she called "a similar story" to inmates at San Quentin with life sentences, explaining that she "was perhaps in the wrong place at the wrong time — but wasn't punished the way they were because clearly it was an accident, but theirs [the prisoners] was probably an accident too."  

"Raked Over The Coals": Some outlets on the right, like Fox News (Right bias) highlighted Rep. Tim Burchett's (R-TN) response to Siebel's claims, saying he "shot back sarcastically: 'Yeah, like the time that guy accidentally stabbed that dude 27 times.'" The Fox article said Siebel "is getting raked over the coals" for her comments. The New York Post (Lean Right) framed Siebel as "an activist filmmaker focused on gender, adding that she "has been dragged for cringeworthy lectures on gender-politics." The article also mentioned that, through her "activist nonprofit," The Representation Project, she paid herself "up to $300,000 annually."

"Distraction Strategy": Focusing on Siebel Newsom's comments is "a distraction strategy," argued Democratic strategist Mike Nellis on Substack. "Instead of talking about Trump's economic record, rising costs, or foreign policy risks, the focus shifts to something designed to spark outrage and go viral online." The day the clip resurfaced was the same day President Donald Trump threatened Iran by saying "A whole civilization will die tonight." Gov. Newsom's Press Office said "Trump is threatening to obliterate a civilization tonight…and Fox News is focused on running nonstop hit pieces on California's First Partner. This is the MAGA distraction machine — in full force.

What People Are Saying: Newsweek (Center) highlighted responses from several different people. Riley Gaines called the clip "Newsom's wife's latest virtue signal," adding that it is "Peak elite tone-deafness." Donald Trump Jr. said "You can't make this s*** up."  Newsweek also added some context to the interview the clip was from, saying "she was advocating for 'being yourself and honest and raw' when relating to different kinds of people."

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