Jun 12, 2018; Oakland, CA, USA; Lieutenant Governor of California and gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom salutes during the championship parade in downtown Oakland. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Sacramento, California – California Governor Gavin Newsom says the state will move ahead with drawing new congressional maps after President Donald Trump missed a self-imposed Tuesday deadline in a heated national redistricting standoff.
The announcement came in an unusually brash social media post from Newsom’s office, written in all caps and laced with taunts aimed at Trump. “DONALD ‘TACO’ TRUMP, AS MANY CALL HIM, ‘MISSED’ THE DEADLINE!!! CALIFORNIA WILL NOW DRAW NEW, MORE ‘BEAUTIFUL MAPS,’ THEY WILL BE HISTORIC AS THEY WILL END THE TRUMP PRESIDENCY (DEMS TAKE BACK THE HOUSE!),” the post read.
The mocking tone mirrored Trump’s own online style, with Newsom repeating the “Taco” nickname — short for “Trump always chickens out” — that Democrats have used to criticize Trump’s shifting timelines in political disputes.
The move is part of a broader showdown between Democratic and Republican states over congressional boundaries. Newsom and other Democratic governors had warned that they would pursue aggressive, partisan mapmaking if Republican-led states, especially Texas, pushed forward with their own redistricting efforts.
In Texas, Democratic lawmakers fled the state earlier this summer to block a GOP-backed map, preventing the legislature from reaching quorum. On Tuesday, the Texas Senate passed its version of the new congressional plan, but without House approval, the measure cannot move forward. Lawmakers are expected to adjourn Friday, though Governor Greg Abbott has pledged to immediately call a new special session.
In a letter sent to Trump on Monday, Newsom struck a more formal tone, saying he preferred that independent commissions — not partisan legislatures — oversee the drawing of congressional districts. He offered to “happily” stand down if other states abandoned their redistricting plans. “California cannot stand idly by as this power grab unfolds,” Newsom wrote.
That message was distilled into another all-caps post from his office: “DONALD TRUMP, IF YOU DO NOT STAND DOWN, WE WILL BE FORCED TO LEAD AN EFFORT TO REDRAW THE MAPS IN CA TO OFFSET THE RIGGING OF MAPS IN RED STATES. BUT IF THE OTHER STATES CALL OFF THEIR REDISTRICTING EFFORTS, WE WILL DO THE SAME.”
At a press conference alongside several of the quorum-breaking Texas legislators and California’s top Democratic lawmakers, Newsom laid out his plan to put new congressional maps before California voters. The proposal would override the state’s existing maps — drawn by its independent redistricting commission — and create five additional Democratic-leaning seats.
Newsom said he was confident voters would approve the plan and pledged that the legislature would act quickly to place the measure on the November ballot, positioning California as a key player in the fight for control of the U.S. House.
