California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has clapped back at podcaster Joe Rogan for slamming him as a “bullshit artist” who “ruined” Los Angeles and the state of California.
On Wednesday’s episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Rogan discussed the potential Democratic contenders for the 2028 presidential election with guest Jack Carr, a former Navy SEAL.
Mentioning former Vice President Kamala Harris and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Rogan then brought up the idea of a Newsom presidency.
Rogan told Carr that the left-wing politicians “don’t have any faith” in Newsom.
“Apparently, they don’t have any faith in Gavin Newsom, which is kind of funny because he wants to be president so bad,” Rogan said.
Rogan, who used to live in California, then shared his perspective on Newsom’s impact on Los Angeles and the rest of the state.
“You can’t ruin a city and then go on to ruin a state and say, ‘Guys, that was just practice. Once I get it as a president, I’m going to fix it. Fix it all,’” he said.
Calling it “so crazy,” Carr then hyped up Newsom as being “so smooth” and a “great politician,” to which Rogan disagreed vehemently.
“No. I think he’s terrible… there’s no one who’s good who’s competing against him. There’s no sincerity… I mean, he’s a good bullshit artist,” said Rogan, who endorsed Newsom nemesis Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
He then alleged that “everybody’s leaving” California because of Newsom’s “horrible shit.”
“The things that he says when he gets confronted: ‘We have the highest this and the highest that.’ Like everybody’s leaving! You have the highest unemployment,” Rogan said. “You have the highest homelessness.”
He added, “Money’s missing. You killed Hollywood. Like Hollywood doesn’t exist anymore. It’s literally gone. Mandated vaccines for kids that didn’t need them. You guys, he did horrible shit.”
Newsom, who has emerged in a poll as a top Democratic candidate for the 2028 presidential nomination, fired back at Rogan’s remarks in an X post.
“Joe Rogan is too [chicken emoji] to have me on his show and expose his listeners to the truth, so I’ll put it here,” the California governor wrote.
He then fought against Rogan’s claims by rattling off some of the state’s economic wins, which include being “4th largest economy in the world and #1 in farming.”
“Invite me on any time,” he added, with a smiley face emoji.
Rogan has yet to respond to Newsom. Reps for Rogan and Newsom’s office didn’t immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
Watch Rogan’s comments about Newsom below.