Knee-deep in a Montana stream, leisurely casting for trout, two fellas in their late 50s did what guys their age do in such moments: chewed the fat about politics.
Except these weren’t just any ol’ fishing buddies: One was CNN anchor Jake Tapper and the other was California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is running for president about as aggressively as possible without actually admitting he’s running for president.
At one point, while casually flicking the fly rod in his right hand, Tapper listed other California Democrats expected to enter the 2028 race, including former Vice President Kamala Harris.
That’s when Newsom dropped his bombshell: “I wouldn’t run if she ran,” and then nonchalantly chewed the end of a fly.
Whatever you think about that pronouncement — and we’ll get to that — let’s pause for a moment and luxuriate in the pure political theater.
Just a rugged man in a stream
There is, of course, nothing nonchalant about the exchange. It’s every bit as contrived and stage-managed as any Beltway TV studio, arguably more so.
And, yet, we’re supposed to take from it that Newsom isn’t just another stuffy old white dude in a suit. “He’s a rugged man of the people, out there, you know, standing in a stream,” said my colleague Mark Z. Barabak, a veteran political columnist who has covered every presidential race since 1980.
“If nothing else, it’s very, very, very not San Francisco,” Barabak said with a chuckle, adding, “one could see, if one wanted, a bit of calculation there.”
In some ways the moment — which has gone every bit as viral as Newsom and CNN’s producers could have hoped when they released it Monday — sums up a candidate who frequently elicits a sharp cringe even from people who admire his politics.
“He’s obviously very intelligent. He’s very well versed on issues. He’s terrific extemporaneously,” Barabak said. “But he can come across as a little too slick, a little too polished, a little too Hollywood.”
I first met Newsom in 2010, when he was running for lieutenant governor. Standing in front of you, making his pitch, he is very impressive.
A candidate with timeshares for sale
But there was also something about him — the slicked hair, the bleached teeth, the slightly too firm handshake — that made me feel as though he was about to sell me a timeshare. I vividly remember the struggle to keep a straight face.
I had the same sensation watching the fly-fishing interview. I love time in the great outdoors as much as the next guy, but come on.
During the interview, Newsom explained that if both he and Harris ran it would result in their “mutually assured destruction.” After all, they come from the same San Francisco Democratic political establishment and share many of the same donors, he said. Cannibalizing each other’s supporters would be a “gift from God” to everyone else in the race, the governor added.
A possible course change?
Then Tapper offered the counter argument: Harris has already run twice and lost, she’s had her shot. Maybe it’s time to give someone else a chance.
Newsom, standing in the river in aviator shades, his dark blue shirt unbuttoned to the sternum, shrugged and acknowledged the point. “That would be the approach to the campaign, certainly, that would be the case you’d make,” he said, as if the thought hadn’t previously occurred to him.
“It’s a pretty good one, actually,” he added, upon reflection. “That’s objectively true.”
Wait a second. Was he gallantly offering to step aside? Or warning Harris against challenging him?
For the record, history does not favor another Harris run. As Barabak pointed out, no Democrat who has been the party’s nominee and lost a presidential election, as Harris did in 2024, has won the nomination again since Adlai Stevenson did it in 1956.
He lost that presidential election, too.
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Things to do
Pupusas made with optional blue corn masa at Delmy’s Pupusas in Los Angeles.
(Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)
Today’s recipe
Vegan carrot and ginger soup.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
This creamy, punchy fresh carrot and ginger soup is vegan and bright, but it’s also hearty. It provides rich protein via the inclusion of white beans, as well as comfort and a bit of heat thanks to a balance of coconut milk, a walloping dose of fresh ginger and Calabrian chile paste. When finished with a squeeze of fresh orange juice, it’s even more refreshing.
Question for you
What’s your favorite place to see fall colors in California? Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
Photo of the day
(Ariana Drehsler / For The Times)
Games
Here’s today’s mini crossword, plus our other free, daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Jack Dolan, investigative reporter
Hugo MartĂn, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
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