Gavin Newsom just crossed a line that has Republicans seeing red.
California taxpayers are funding his partisan crusade days before a critical election.
And Gavin Newsom got caught red-handed using taxpayer money for one war against Republicans.
California blames Trump for food stamp crisis in mass text campaign
The California Department of Social Services is texting residents across the state blaming President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans for the government shutdown threatening to halt food stamp benefits.
Multiple California residents received text messages stating “President Trump & Congress failed to reopen federal government. Nov. CalFresh benefits will be delayed. Oct. benefits unaffected.”¹
The message directs recipients to the state’s Department of Social Services website.
California Republican Assemblyman Carl DeMaio blasted the text campaign as taxpayer-funded “propaganda” designed to influence voting on Proposition 50.
“This is as outrageous as you can get when it comes to taxpayer money being used to promote lies to try to impact the outcome of a pending election,” DeMaio told The Daily Wire.²
The timing couldn’t be more suspicious.
California voters head to the polls November 4 to decide Proposition 50, which would allow state Democrats to gerrymander congressional districts in their favor.
Newsom’s office plays dumb about political messaging
When The Daily Wire contacted Governor Newsom’s office for comment on the text messages, his spokesman replied “Seriously?”³
That reaction alone tells you everything you need to know about how brazen this political operation is.
Newsom’s communications team then tried to deflect by pointing to the USDA’s website, which also contains political messaging about Senate Democrats blocking food stamp funding.
The USDA banner states “Senate Democrats have now voted 12 times to not fund the food stamp program” and notes Democrats “can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.”⁴
But there’s a critical difference.
The Trump administration isn’t facing a special election in eight days where control of Congress hangs in the balance.
Democrats weaponize shutdown for naked power grab
The federal government shutdown began October 1, putting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program at risk.⁵
The Agriculture Department warned states that if the shutdown continues, the program will run out of money to pay for benefits in November.⁶
About 5.5 million low-income Californians receive CalFresh food benefits each month.⁷
Newsom has been using the shutdown to campaign for Proposition 50 at every opportunity.
The governor deployed the California National Guard and pledged $80 million in state funding to assist food banks, framing it as California stepping up “where federal cowardice has failed families.”⁸
Proposition 50 would temporarily suspend California’s independent Citizens Redistricting Commission and allow Democrats to redraw congressional maps through 2030.⁹
The new gerrymandered districts would target five Republican-held House seats by packing in more urban Democratic voters.¹⁰
Democrats have raised nearly $99 million for Proposition 50, with major contributions from George Soros ($10 million) and the House Majority PAC ($10.99 million).¹¹
The measure represents Democrats’ attempt to offset Republican redistricting gains in Texas.¹²
President Trump encouraged the Texas redistricting effort, and Newsom responded by rushing Proposition 50 through the California legislature in just four days during August.¹³
California voters now face a stark choice on November 4.
They can approve Democrat gerrymandering and reward Newsom’s partisan games with taxpayer resources.
Or they can reject Proposition 50 and send a message that manipulating government agencies for political advantage won’t be tolerated.
The text message campaign shows exactly what kind of politics Gavin Newsom practices.
And it’s not pretty.
¹ Cameron Arcand, “Gavin Newsom Uses Taxpayer Dollars To Spread Anti-Trump ‘Propaganda’ Days Before Election,” The Daily Wire, October 27, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ “Food stamps: Facts to know as millions on SNAP face losing benefits during shutdown,” Tampa Bay Times, October 27, 2025.
⁶ Ibid.
⁷ “Trump shutdown could soon halt food support for millions in California,” Office of the Governor of California, October 20, 2025.
⁸ “California to deploy National Guard to support food banks,” Office of the Governor of California, October 22, 2025.
⁹ “California Proposition 50,” Ballotpedia, accessed October 27, 2025.
¹⁰ “Everything you need to know about California’s Proposition 50,” KCRA, October 9, 2025.
¹¹ “The campaign over Gavin Newsom’s maps is one of California’s most expensive ever,” CalMatters, October 15, 2025.
¹² “2025 California Proposition 50,” Wikipedia, accessed October 27, 2025.
¹³ Ibid.
¹⁴ Arcand, The Daily Wire.
¹⁵ Ibid.
