California Gov. Gavin Newsom turned Donald Trump’s recent campaign remarks into a punchline during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Wednesday night, before predicting a sweeping Democratic victory in the November 3 midterm elections.
The governor was discussing Trump’s campaign appearances when Kimmel brought up the president’s recent comments about other men’s physical appearances, including Republican Sen. Jon Husted.
Newsom responded with a joke that quickly shifted from Trump’s remarks to the election.
“He does have a bit of a fixation with, forgive me, people’s asses,” Newsom said. “But the only ass I care about is the one we’re gonna kick on Tuesday.”
The exchange came amid a series of unusual remarks by Trump about the physical appearance of Republican politicians and supporters at recent campaign rallies.
But Newsom’s appearance was not limited to jokes.
When Kimmel asked whether Trump might become more confrontational if Republicans lose control of Congress, Newsom said he expected the president’s behavior to intensify.
“Yeah, he’s going to get crazier and crazier, but this is going to be a blue tsunami,” the governor predicted.
Newsom pointed to early voting activity and enthusiasm among Democratic voters as reasons for his confidence.
“We’re going to see records go down. We’re seeing it. And Jimmy, I’m not asserting something that’s not in evidence. You’re seeing all the early voting, it’s off the chart. The energy’s off the chart.”
“People understand what’s at stake. It’s all on the line,” he added.
Those comments were Newsom’s political forecast, not a confirmed election outcome. Control of the House and Senate will be decided by voters on November 3.
The conversation then moved to election administration in California, where Newsom said his team was preparing to monitor federal election observers and respond to potential problems.
“Right now, I am focused on getting over 1,000 poll workers, folks out there to monitor the DOJ monitors that Trump’s going to send to try to steal this election,” Newsom said.
“No question in my mind he’s going to try to steal this election.”
The governor’s allegation about Trump’s intentions was not established as fact during the interview. The Justice Department has maintained that its election-monitoring activities are lawful, while California officials have challenged certain federal actions in court.
Newsom then described the scale of the state’s planned election-protection operation.
“We have 1,000 volunteers. We’ve been running tabletop exercises. We have 1,000 volunteers. We’re going to roll it,” he told Kimmel.
“We have 134 election law attorneys that we’re sending out. I can’t believe we’re doing this. We have to do this. We’re not screwing around, nor is he, but we can’t screw around.”
The governor also announced a voter assistance hotline, 877-321-VOTE, with 54 operators assigned to receive reports of potential election problems.
“We have strike teams, and we’re going to make sure we’re monitoring the vote count until the last damn vote is counted and certified in this election,” he added.
The preparations are connected to an ongoing dispute between California and the federal government over election oversight and ballot handling.
A federal judge ruled against a Justice Department effort involving approximately 20,000 California ballots, while federal officials have announced plans to deploy election observers to selected locations.
California Democratic officials say their volunteers and attorneys will monitor the process and respond to possible interference. Republican officials have questioned Newsom’s accusations, arguing that federal election observers are a lawful and longstanding part of election oversight.
For Newsom, the interview brought together two themes that have defined his recent public appearances: sharp criticism of Trump and an effort to draw attention to the stakes of the midterms.
His joke about the president’s campaign remarks supplied the evening’s most memorable line.
His discussion of election monitoring showed that, regardless of his confidence in a Democratic victory, his party is preparing for a potentially contentious vote count.
The outcome of the midterms — and whether Newsom’s prediction of a “blue tsunami” proves accurate — remains to be seen.
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