Donald Trump Gives Gavin Newsom New Nickname in Blistering Border Speech

Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday was given a new nickname by Donald Trump during the former president's visit to the U.S. southern border: "New Scum."

"I mean, you look at this governor, 'New Scum' from California," Trump said while delivering a speech from Eagle Pass, Texas. "Isn't that his name, 'New Scum'? What he's done to California is unbelievable."

During his visit, Trump was joined by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a fellow Republican, and Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council.

The Context

Trump, front-runner in the GOP presidential primary race, has a history of coining brutal nicknames for his opponents. His visit to the U.S.-Mexico border on Thursday comes as congressional lawmakers wrangle over spending measures regarding national security and immigration, where House Republicans have drawn a hard line against President Joe Biden's request.

Biden also visited the southern border on Thursday, in Brownsville, Texas, and was joined by federal U.S. Border Patrol agents, alongside Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The president has repeatedly tangled with Texas Republicans—namely Abbott—over addressing immigration control.

Newsom, a supporter of Biden, has also squabbled with his Republican counterparts on immigration issues. California's southern border has become a hot spot for migrant encounters, although Newsom has taken a different approach than his opponents to address the issue, including by expanding health care access for undocumented immigrants at the start of the year.

What We Know

During Trump's speech, he threw several jabs at the Biden administration's handling of the U.S. border, claiming that the country is "being overrun by the Biden migrant crime." The former president also touted Texas officials as "incredible people," praising their efforts to curb migration.

"This is a Biden invasion over the past three years," Trump said.

The former president also bashed Newsom's effort to expand health care access for migrants, claiming that "people are pouring in" to California thinking that they are "gonna get medical aid."

"And our soldiers, our vets aren't being taken care of, but people that come into our country illegally are," Trump added.

Newsweek reached out to Newsom's press office via email on Thursday for comment.

Views

While Trump was welcomed by Texas Republicans, Biden faced criticism for his visit to the border, including from Judd, who said the president's effort was "too little, too late."

"Whether stating it himself or through [White House] Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre, Biden has said he's done everything he can to secure the border," Judd said in a statement on Monday. "If that was the truth, and it wasn't, there would be no point in visiting the border now."

Biden was also confronted by reporters over the killing of 22-year-old Laken Riley, a nursing student who last week was found dead in Athens, Georgia. Police have charged 26-year-old Venezuelan migrant Jose Antonio Ibarra in Riley's death, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has said that Ibarra entered the country illegally near El Paso, Texas, in September 2022.

A reporter asked the president on Thursday if he felt he had "any responsibility" in Riley's death. Biden did not respond and it's unclear if he heard the question.

The president focused his visit on the $118 billion border bill that failed to pass the Senate earlier this month after being blocked by Republicans. The president asked Trump, who adamantly opposed the bipartisan measure, to "join me" in supporting the bill on Thursday, adding, "We can do it together."

What's Next?

As the U.S. grapples with a record number of migrant encounters along the southern border, Biden and Trump's immigration policies will continue to sit at the forefront of voters' minds heading into the presidential election in November. According to a recent Gallup poll, an increasing number of Americans view immigration as a "critical threat" that is negatively impacting the U.S.

Biden's administration has specifically taken the heat on the issue of migration. In an ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted in mid-January, only 18 percent of respondents said they approve of the president's handling of immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border, the lowest rating on immigration for any president that ABC News/Washington Post polls have found since January 2004.