The national flameout of Gavin Newsom

For years, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been campaigning for the presidency.

In 2022, Newsom notably called out the Democratic Party for, apparently, not being bold enough in its stand against conservative pushes on social issues.

“Where is the Democratic Party?” Newsom asked. “Why aren’t we standing up more firmly? More resolutely? Why aren’t we calling this out?”

Everyone knew what he was doing, and in June of that year, Politico reported “the moves have been widely interpreted as a relatively young executive using the specter of a future presidential bid to shine a bright spotlight on himself. And they’ve been enough to elicit early brushbacks from allies of Biden and Harris.”

That wasn’t enough to deter Newsom. who last year launched a Campaign for Democracy super PAC and traveled through Republican states in an obvious bid to build his national profile. He also bought ads blasting conservative leaders across the country.

His public, attention-grabbing feud with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis even culminated in a peculiar Fox News debate during the presidential primary season.

And he even pitched a 28th amendment aimed at enshrining gun control policies directly into the U.S. Constitution.

In recent months, with Biden lagging in the polls, Newsom has obviously been thinking about his political future, too. He has been widely described as absent from critical legislative matters in the Golden State as he found time to campaign in support of President Biden during and after Biden’s doomed debate with former president Donald Trump.

Throughout all of this, Newsom downplayed his interest in the presidency. But everyone knew that wasn’t true. And throughout all of this, everyone wondered how exactly he thought he could end up on a presidential ticket given the fact that fellow Californian Kamala Harris was already the vice president of the United States.

As it turned out, the thing Newsom was waiting for — Biden dropping out — happened and the obvious back-up plan for such a situation — having Harris step in for Biden — also happened.

Which has left Newsom with nowhere to go, politically, unless Harris loses in November. Instead, for the time being, Newsom found himself having to present as really enthusiastic about Harris this week at the Democratic National Convention.

“I saw that star get even brighter as attorney general, as a U.S. senator and as vice president of the United States of America. Kamala Harris has always done the right thing,” he said during a weirdly staged roll call in which he pledged California’s support for Harris. “It’s time for us to do the right thing and elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States of America.”

Of course, the actual history of Harris’ rise in California politics is much more boring. Harris did nothing of any real significance as a senator besides launch a really bad campaign for president. And her time as attorney general and San Francisco district attorney included a crime lab scandal, her fighting civil asset forfeiture reform and fought justice for wrongly convicted individuals.

Alas, it is that underwhelming figure who beat out Newsom.

Maybe now, Newsom can set his dreams aside and focus on, maybe, governing California.