Transcription
In the aftermath of today's bombshell announcement by Gavin Newsom that the DOJ is now targeting him and his family, Attorney General Todd Blanche was asked for a comment about the latest instance of vindictive prosecution. Here's what that looked like.
"General Blanche, General Blanche, can you conf- can you confirm if this Justice Department is investigating Gavin Newsom? And if the president directed you to do this? He says it's being weaponized against him. Did the president tell you to investigate Gavin Newsom? General Blanche, can you at least confirm that this investigation is happening?"
"He's making some very serious..."
"January 6th that Senator Tillis has asked you to do in order to get confirmed."
"He's made some serious accusations. Can you please respond to that, General Blanche? Any comment at all?"
"Weird. I thought the new Trump DOJ loved to talk about ongoing investigations, especially when they involve ICE agents shooting unarmed Americans in the streets. Guess they're a little less chatty when it's not about dead Americans whose stories they're trying to spin, huh?"
Now, this comes after Gavin Newsom made the following announcement this morning.
"In recent days, federal agents have knocked on the doors of family, friends, and former employees. Not because they found a crime, because they're simply trying to find one. They're demanding records. They're abusing the grand jury process, digging through years and years of random documents. Donald Trump isn't just coming after me because of my mean tweets. He's coming after me because I'm considering running for president. Because he hates that I've consistently called him out over and over again for his lies and deceit. Donald Trump is simply the most corrupt president in American history. He's turned the levers of government into his own personal power ministries to reward cronies and to try to jail his opponents. His personal attorney now runs the Department of Justice, which has repeatedly gone after his political enemies. Ask Jerome Powell. Sent them after James Comey, Chris James, Adam Schiff. He sent them after Tim Waltz and a woman that a jury found Donald Trump had sexually abused. One by one, anyone who has challenged Donald Trump has ended up on his hit list. And today, I proudly join that list. After calling for my arrest last year, Donald Trump directed his Department of Justice to investigate me. And just in the last week, I've learned that his campaign has reached my own home. To get me, he's coming after my wife, Jen. A public servant, a woman who's dedicated her life to supporting women and girls. Someone who has done nothing wrong other than having the temerity to advocate for what she believes in. If they can't intimidate me, they'll go after the mother of our children. Donald Trump picked the wrong target. We have nothing to hide. His political operatives can take every record and read every page, but they'll be looking in the wrong place. Because if they really want to find corruption, look no further than 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Donald Trump is selling the presidency. He's running the largest cash heist in American political history, trading foreign tariff relief for approval of his golf courses, day trading behind the Resolute Desk, reaping hundreds of millions of dollars in personal profit. And he's doing it openly. He's doing it on camera. He did it last night on the White House lawn. He's doing it through cryptocurrencies. He's doing it through the receipt of a $400 million private jet from a foreign government that he plans to keep when he leaves office. There are his son's ventures in countries where his own administration is simultaneously making policy. His personal fortune has skyrocketed by $4 billion since making his return to office. This is the behavior of a regime, not a republic. The White House has become a marketplace, a marketplace for sneakers and coins and watches, cologne, guitars, Bibles, and phones. Influence for sale, access for sale. And today, my family and I can personally confirm that justice is for sale."
"Now, we got a refreshingly honest response there from Newsom. He is thinking of running for president. I think that's as far as I'm concerned, the first time that he's made that announcement. And so, because that poses a threat to Trump and his movement, now the White House needs to use the tools available to it to go after him. This isn't an example of the DOJ going after a crime. It's the DOJ going after a person and trying desperately to find a crime to justify it."
"Just a quick note here to say that if you appreciate my work, which is and always will be 100% free, a small ask is if you could please pre-order my new book, The Day After, which explores how Democrats must finally wield power if they're fortunate enough to get it back. I'll also be on tour in DC, New York, and LA mid-July. You can grab tickets to the tour, and you can pre-order the book at the same link, which I'll put on the screen and in the post description of this video. You can also find them at briantylercohen.com/book. Again, I'll never paywall a single piece of content, but this is the one time that I'll ask for some support for a book that I really think meets this moment. Thanks so much."
"By the way, Newsom knows that this whole thing is a conclusion in search of evidence, which explains his next move. He submitted a FOIA request through his attorneys to the DOJ demanding emails, signal chats, and text messages, along with other communications using terms like Newsom, Gavin Newsom, Jennifer Newsom from January 2025 to today. In other words, if there are official communications from administration officials demanding that dirt be dug up on the Newsom family to retroactively justify this prosecution, then that'll be a pretty open and shut case that the White House is targeting its opponents and vindictively prosecuting them. It'll also mean that any attorneys involved are guaranteed to be referred to bar council in their respective states to have their law licenses reviewed and it might also mean that the Newsoms could have a civil case in court on their hands."
"And look, Newsom getting added to an enemies list is unfortunately nothing new. And I have some authority to speak here given the fact that Trump just added me to his official enemies list, a media offenders list, which is a list of content creators that this White House is now targeting. Is the addition to this enemies list warranted? Absolutely not. But it's not about the merits of inclusion. The whole point of adding people to these lists is to harass Trump's opponents, to make it emotionally, mentally, physically, and financially painful. That's what they did to James Comey, Letitia James, Jerome Powell, Tim Walls, E. Jean Carroll, and on and on. For a party that literally had a weaponization of government subcommittee, so upset were they at the prospect of the government going after people, they sure have forgotten their opposition to censorship over the last 2 years."
"But look, Newsom deserves credit for not capitulating, especially in light of the fact that so many have. We have seen law firms bend the knee, universities bend the knee, tech CEOs, media companies, news outlets, all massive institutions with all the resources at their disposal, and yet so many have decided to take the easy route and capitulate. And so they'll not only heap money into Trump's pockets, but send him a message that it is easy to own these people because they won't put up a fight. That behavior makes it all the more difficult for everybody else, including me, and it's infuriating. That's why when it came to be my turn, this was my official response."
"I've spent a lot of time reporting on the news. I try very hard not to be the news. This video is going to be a little bit different. On the whitehouse.gov website, taxpayer-funded website, you'll now see my name under a list of media offenders. So, I am officially on one of Donald Trump's enemies list. This is, I guess, a new iteration that's focused on content creators now that he's moved through law firms, universities, tech companies, media outlets, comedians. I guess we're up to content creators now. So, in consultation with my attorneys, I've drafted a response, uh a legal response, uh to Trump putting my name on this enemies list as far as content creators are concerned, and it goes as follows."
"You. Suck my dick."
"So, why do that? Why poke the bear? Because I got tired of watching people with a hell of a lot more power and money and influence than me roll over and play dead. So, if I could offer a blueprint for anybody in the future, content creators, journalists, independent media, you name it, who get targeted to fight back with no fear, then I'll have done my job. And Newsom is doing his by not backing down and speaking out because this administration does not respond to weakness by backing down. They respond to weakness by punching you again and again and again over and over and over. That's why Trump continues to go after ABC and Disney, their parent company, even after they paid him $16 million because he doesn't respect them. He sees them as chumps because they acted like chumps. The only way to beat a bully is to punch him in the face. That's what we're doing."
"One last note, if you'd like to show some support for my work, I will ask for one thing, even though I don't paywall any of my content and I never will. I do have a book coming out in just a few weeks. The single best way to support me, if you can, is to pre-order my book titled The Day After. It's a blueprint for how Democrats can and must fight back against this aspiring autocrat. And this example right here is exactly why. I'm going to put a link to pre-order that book right here on the screen, in the post description, in the comments, or you can go to briantylercohen.com/book. I'll also be on tour in Washington, D.C., New York City, and Los Angeles in mid-July. I would love to see you in person if you live in any of those three cities or if you can be close to any of those three cities. And you can grab tickets at that same link, briantylercohen.com/book. Thanks so much."
"Before you go, I'm very excited to announce that I've written a new book titled The Day After: How to wield power in a post-Trump world. The book explores what is, in my opinion, the single most important theme that we're dealing with in politics today and moving forward: power. Specifically, how Republicans abuse it and how Democrats refuse to wield it. This book explains how we got here and, more importantly, how we should finally wield power if we're fortunate enough to get it back. It is the blueprint for progressives who want to do far more than just restore the status quo. Please pre-order today by visiting the link in the episode description or go to briantylercohen.com/book. You can grab yours from any of the major retailers like Amazon or Barnes & Noble or find an independent bookstore closest to you. That's also listed on that website. Thanks so much for supporting independent media."