Newsom Plays ‘Moderate’: Vetoes Transgender Custody Bill

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) vetoed a bill Friday that would have allowed judges to consider a parent’s support — or lack thereof — for a child’s gender transition in custody battles between divorcing parents.

In June, as Breitbart News reported, a Republican lawmaker urged families to flee the state if AB 957, co-authored by Assemblymember Lori Wilson (D-Suisun City) and State Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), became law.

But — as this author predicted — Newsom decided to strike a “moderate” posture, as he eyes a national political career, allowing his party and his administration to take radical positions and then tacking toward the center.

Newsom issued a message explaining his veto, in which he said California courts can already consider a parent’s support for a child’s gender transition, and implied he was concerned about conservative reaction in other states.

He wrote:

I urge caution when the Executive and Legislative branches of state government attempt to dictate – in prescriptive terms that single out one characteristic – legal standards for the Judicial branch to apply. Other-minded elected officials, in California and other states, could very well use this strategy to diminish the civil rights of vulnerable communities.

Moreover, a court, under existing law, is required to consider a child’s health, safety, and welfare when determining the best interests of a child in these proceedings, including the parent’s affirmation of the child’s gender identity.

He followed on Saturday with a statement claiming “Governor Newsom Signs Legislation Supporting LGBTQ+ Californians,” which pointed to other laws that he had signed, in deference to the LGBTQ+ activist community.

Newsom’s administration continues to target school districts that adopt parental notification policies. He recently said that parents worried about schools hiding gender transitions had been “ginned up” by misinformation.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.