Wednesday on CNN’s “The Lead,” Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) said President Donald Trump and his administration have been responsive to California’s needs during the coronavirus outbreak.
Anchor Jake Tapper said, “I’ve talked to officials throughout the country who have said that they have to temper their remarks and what they say about the federal government response for fear that President Trump will punish the citizens of their state if he considers them to be a complainer. You and President Trump seem to have been working collaboratively. He praised you yesterday. Do you find yourself by necessity tempering what you say in terms of any issues you might have with the federal response?
Newsom said, “I’ve been consistent, and Jake — know this, we’ve been dealing with historic wildfires and droughts out in the west here in California. And I’ve always said, I said it back a year ago, this is not time to bicker, I don’t care who is up and down, whose polls are looking better than someone else’s or who wants to run for President or who doesn’t. When it comes to times of crisis, we need to rise above the partisanship. And I’ve extended always an open hand, not a closed fist in those circumstances. And this is no different. But let me just be candid with you. I’d be lying to you to say that he hasn’t been responsive to our needs. He has.”
He added, “And so, as a question, as a sort of an offer of objectivity, I have to acknowledge that publicly. And the fact is, every time I called the President, he’s quickly gotten on the line. When we asked to get support for that Mercy ship for Southern California, he was able to direct that in real-time. We have 2,000 of these field medical sites that are up, almost all operational now in the state because of his support. Those are the facts. We always want more. I could criticize this or that. At the end of the day, we’re just trying to focus on developing a relationship of trust as a matter of course because there’s too many Americans, 40 million, that live in this state that deserve for to us get together and get along.”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN