Gavin Newsom's foray into podcasting backfires spectacularly as Californians share their savage reviews

Californians ripped Governor Gavin Newsom in response to the Democrat's newly launched podcast, calling him everything from 'out of touch' and 'disgusting' to a 'phony hair gel idiot.'

A new poll of 1,000 Golden State voters by Capitol Weekly found that the podcast is hurting the governor - with 26 percent of respondents saying their perspective of Newsom worsened after hearing it.

Newsom dropped the divisive debut episode of his This is Gavin Newsom Podcast on March 6, featuring a conversation with MAGA commentator Charlie Kirk.

During their chat, the governor fawned over the right-wing influencer, admitting his son is a 'huge fan' of the conservative.

He also broke ranks with fellow Democrats by declaring that it was unfair for transgender athletes to take part it women's sports.

Of the survey's respondents - who were asked to watch three clips of Newsom's conversation with Kirk - only 13 percent said their opinion of him improved after hearing the podcast. Fifty-eight percent said it made no difference.

Since the podcast launched, Newsom's favorability rating declined from 52 percent in an earlier poll to 47 percent, according to Capitol Weekly. 

'I don't watch his stupid podcast,' one voter asserted in his survey response. 

'Joe Rogan and Megan Kelly are real podcasts not some Bulls**t phony hair gel idiot trying to run for president.'

The first clip that voters were asked to listen to featured Newsom remarking on how his son, a fan of Kirk's, wanted to miss school so he could meet him. 

The second included Newsom speaking out against 'woke culture,' including references to people's preferred pronouns and the term 'Latinx.' 

The final segment focused on the governor's feelings on transgender women in sports, during which he declared that it was 'deeply unfair' for people who were born male to play in female sports. 

Many reacted negatively to all three clips, with critics across political parties questioning the governor's integrity and accusing him of saying anything to gather support for a 2028 presidential bid. 

The first clip garnered reactions that were 43 percent negative, 34 percent positive and 21 percent neutral.

'Greasy Gavin Newsom is a Massive liar,' one Republican respondent wrote. 

'He wants to be President, so he will say ANYTHING if helps him look good.'

'He's just kissing Kirk's a**. There is nothing, ever, genuine, honest, or real about Gavin Newsom,' another self-described conservative man added. 

Others called out Newsom for going against his own views in a 'disgusting' and 'ridiculous' attempt to gain political support. 

Left-leaning viewers were particularly aggravated by Newsom's decision to even invite Kirk on the show. 

'Disgusting,' one liberal listener wrote. 'Charlie Kirk is a f**king nazi.'

In response to Newsom's views on woke culture - in which the governor said that announcing pronouns is irrelevant and that the term 'Latinx' has never been used in his office - respondents appeared fed-up with Newsom's 'meaningless' arguments.

Responding to the second segment, 57 percent of voters were negative, 20 percent were positive and 21 percent were neutral.  

'He is an idiot, don't believe a word he says,' said one man who described himself as independent.

'Newsom being trashy to appeal to the center. He was married to someone who went out with Trump Jr. That's not a coincidence,' another Independent voter chimed in. 

'Is he going to run with Liz Cheney as well?'

Even those who had neutral responses called out Newsom for dodging important issues and not contributing anything of substance to the discussion.  

'Interesting, but not a major issue anymore. I still don’t get what woke actually means, but my granddaughter has given me a thorough explanation on the use of pronouns,' one Democrat wrote. 'Shows Newsom is irrelevant.'

A Republican agreed: 'Meaningless. Never said Latinx, so what? All that noise and never expressed a position or point of view. Too much chatter, not any substance.'

The final surveyed section warranted the most viewer anger - with 63 percent of reactions being negative, 20 percent positive and 16 being neutral. 

Newsom tackled the issue of trans women in sports and called out Kirk and other conservatives for 'weaponizing' trans-athleticism. 

The governor added that he believes people born male should not be allowed in women's sports. 

'This is an uninformed opinion. Transwomen are typically on hormones, including testosterone blockers, so they are NOT playing as men,' one Democrat wrote. 'Get your facts before speaking for or against an oppressed group of people, especially these days.' 

People from various political parties branded Newsom a poor leader for hardly challenging Kirk. Republicans specifically said the governor was being a hypocrite. 

'Newsome [sic] had an opportunity to denounce transgender participation in sports, but did not have the courage to do so,' a Republican argued. 

Another elaborated: 'Newsome [sic] doesn't have the balls to stand up against the crazies who voted for him. No person with half a brain cell thinks that men in women's sports is a good or fair or safe thing. A real leader would unapologetically stand up against this, but Newsome [sic] isn't a leader and never will be.'

One Democrat stated: 'I think the Governor is out of touch with Democratic voters if he's saying these things.'

Along with Kirk, Newsom has offered other conservative figures a seat at the microphone, including Steve Bannon and radio host Michael Savage. 

Newsom's has said that he would be inviting guests that hold different views than he does. 

'I think we all agreed after the last election that it’s important for Democrats to explore new and unique ways of talking to people,' he said.