Governor Newsom: The Untold Story

A treasure trove of information about a man who could be the next president.

Governor Newsom: The Untold Story

A book that digs far beneath the surface of Gavin Newsom’s image to expose his actual record as governor of California, the state with the fourth-largest economy in the world.

Four eminent journalists and policy analysts teamed up to unearth what Newsom really did as the Golden State’s chief executive on crucial matters, including Economic Priorities, Public Health, and the Environment; “National Security” and International Relations; Criminal Justice; and Rights and Civil Liberties.

Investigative Team

Daniel Boguslaw is an investigative reporter covering national security and American intelligence agencies. He previously worked at the Intercept, the American Prospect, and the New Republic. He has reported on federal law enforcement agencies like the FBI and CIA, and written investigative deep dives on AI integration with the nuclear arsenal and domestic surveillance matters.

Marjorie Cohn is professor emerita at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, a former criminal defense attorney, and past president of the National Lawyers Guild. She is a regular columnist for Truthout, has testified before Congress, and provides legal/political commentary for local, regional, national, and international media. Her most recent book is Drones and Targeted Killing: Legal, Moral, and Geopolitical Issues.

Zack Kaldveer is a communications strategist and public policy advocate with nearly three decades of experience advancing evidence-based solutions in pursuit of justice. His work has spanned labor, environmental, economic, health, consumer rights, and corporate accountability. He leads communications for the Healthy Work Campaign and Prevention Policy Group at the Public Health Institute and serves as a Pacifica National Board Director.

Brett Wilkins is a staff writer for Common Dreams specializing in issues of war and peace and human rights. He lives in San Francisco and, when not writing or organizing with local progressive groups and candidates, enjoys traveling around the country and especially abroad.

Editor

Norman Solomon is the author of more than a dozen books including, most recently, War Made Invisible and The Blue Road to Trump Hell: How Corporate Democrats Paved the Way for Autocracy. He is executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy and co-founder of RootsAction. His articles on politics appear in The Hill, The Guardian, The Nation, Common Dreams and other outlets. Solomon has often been a guest on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, Democracy Now! and many other TV and radio programs. He is a recipient of the George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language.

Praise for
Governor Newsom:
The Untold Story

“Behind his image as an audacious anti-Trump political leader, lies a far more complex political figure. Ranging from tax policy to foreign policy to healthcare, Governor Gavin Newsom emerges in Governor Newsom: The Untold Story as someone fast on progressive rhetoric, but inconsistent on implementation. Indeed, through this important book, the reader comes to see Newsom not as a progressive visionary, but someone trying desperately to restore and strengthen what could be called multi-cultural neoliberalism. As a potential candidate for the presidency, this book helps to sweep aside the rhetoric and focuses, instead, on the actual practice, leaving it to the reader to draw their conclusions as to whether this is someone worthy of national office.”

Bill Fletcher, Jr.

Trade unionist and author, “They’re Bankrupting Us!”: And 20 Other Myths about Unions

"As a two-term governor of the country's largest state, Gavin Newsom will likely be a leading contender for the 2028 Democratic nomination. Governor Newsom: The Untold Story provides important background on his record that people should know before making up their minds on his fitness for the presidency."

Dean Baker

Co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, author of Rigged: How Globalization and the Rules of the Modern Economy Were Structured to Make the Rich Richer

"Governor Newsom: The Untold Story arrives at a moment when democracy is under siege and the distance between political rhetoric and the exercise of power has become a matter of urgent public concern. Rigorous, deeply researched, and unafraid to challenge the polished narratives of political leadership, this important collection asks readers to judge power by what it does: whom it serves, whose suffering it ignores, and what forms of inequality it reproduces. In an age of rising authoritarianism, concentrated wealth, and the erosion of democratic institutions, this book makes a compelling case that democracy depends upon an informed public willing to look beyond political branding and hold power accountable. It is a timely and necessary intervention and should be read by everyone concerned about the fate and future of democracy."

Henry Giroux

McMaster University Chair Professor for Scholarship in the Public Interest, author of Assassins of Memory: Critical Pedagogy and the Politics of Erasure