Newsom to Trump: 'Respect the pleas of 40 million Americans'

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

73% : Newsom delivered an acid-laced reply when asked Saturday whether he expected Trump to respond to the invitation.
58% : During the president-elect's first term, Newsom and Trump also maintained a friendly behind-the-scenes relationship, which appears to have since dissipated.
57% : Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair Kathryn Barger echoed Newsom's call with her own invitation to Trump on Saturday, imploring the incoming president to stand with county residents as they rebuild.
45% : But he also suggested that he worked as closely with Trump during the COVID-19 pandemic as any Democratic governor in America, taking the slightly more measured approach that he has put forth.
43% : As governor, Newsom took advantage of the state's position as the liberal antithesis to Trump to elevate his own national profile during the president-elect's first term.
43% : The special session immediately reignited the California versus Trump narrative from four years ago, though Newsom has attempted to downplay any political motivation and said his experience proved the need to prepare to protect environmental policies, abortion access and other state priorities.
41% : Newsom and California similarly gave Trump a chance to call out the follies of Democratic rule, endearing the president to his own base.
34% : Less than 36 hours after Trump won the 2024 presidential election, Newsom called a special session of the Legislature to give the California Department of Justice an extra $25 million to wage legal battles against the incoming administration.
24% : "Our preparing for the inevitable -- which is an assault on our values, our diverse communities -- we would be absolutely remiss not to prepare for that," Newsom said, citing the myriad lawsuits the state litigated with Trump during his tenure and prior threats to withhold disaster assistance from the people of California.
3% : The invitation, which the governor's office said was emailed to Trump's team, marked a slight change in tone in the political battle between Newsom and Trump, with Newsom imploring Trump not to politicize the tragedy.

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