After Viral Clip Goes Sour, Reporter Asks for Newsom's Dyslexia Diagnosis, Gets Typical Response From Gov's Team
Well, at least you can’t say Gov. Gavin Newsom and his people aren’t consistent.
The California governor, as you may have heard, went bad-viral after a Sunday speech in which he told Atlanta Democrats — who are largely black — that he was just like them because he had a low SAT score and couldn’t read.
He blamed this all on dyslexia. Fair enough, reporters said: Can you share with us details of this diagnosis?
The response was, alas, basically on-brand for Newsom and his people: “Respectfully, f*** off.”
Hey, at least it was “respectful.”
So, in case you missed it, here was the very rich, very white Newsom trying to commiserate with the black Democrat voters he’ll definitely have to win over during the presidential primaries he’s all but announced for in 2028:
Gov. Newsom to a black crowd in GA: “I am like you. I’m a 960 SAT guy. I can’t read.” pic.twitter.com/4Gk0WKbIYz
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 23, 2026
“I’m just trying to impress upon you, I’m like you,” Newsom said. “I’m no better than you. You know, I’m a 960 SAT guy. And you know, I’m not trying to offend anyone, you know, trying to act all there if you got 940, but literally a 960 SAT guy.
“You’ve never seen me read a speech, because I cannot read a speech,” he continued. “Maybe the wrong business to be in. Uh, you know, my dyslexia — I haven’t overcome dyslexia. I’m living with it.”
Wonderful. Leaving aside the fact that, just like the fact that we feel for blind men but don’t let them pilot planes, we can feel for the dyslexic who cannot read a speech while admitting this disqualifies him from contention for the White House.
But then again, we can also dismiss this prattle as another attempt to concoct a “poorigin” story, which he’s been trying to do ever since he realized that being the exceptionally privileged son of a scion in America’s most out-of-touch city wasn’t exactly what voters were looking for, especially black Democrat voters:
WARNING: The following posts contain vulgar language that some readers will find offensive.
Gavin debuts his hip hop persona on an NBA podcast:
“It was about payin’ the bills, man.”
“Hustlin.”
“I raised myself.”
“Wonder bread and Mac ‘n cheese. That’s how I grew up, bro.”
(His dad was the attorney for the billionaire Getty family.)pic.twitter.com/24CXtlF4fS
— John LeFevre (@JohnLeFevre) October 26, 2025
Just hustlin’, bro. Just like, you know, you guys. Y’hear me, fam?
And of course, people noticed that, when talking to white people, he could read just fine:
Newsom to a black audience: “I’m too dumb to read, like you!”
Newsom to a white audience: “I read a 300-page book in 2 hours.”
Racist? Liar? Both? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/tU7TJbBBLr https://t.co/gHUfiOvWtw
— Wall Street Mav (@WallStreetMav) February 23, 2026
Anyhow, given the racial import of what the governor is saying as well as the fact he’s all but running for president in 2028, this diagnosis and the details surrounding it are sort of important, so RealClearPolitics reporter Susan Crabtree sent Newsom’s communications team some questions about his diagnosis.
Their response, yesterday afternoon: “Hey, Susan — thanks for reaching out. Respectfully, f*** off.”
🚨🚨EXCLUSIVE and BREAKING: What about that @GavinNewsom dyslexia disgnosis – can the gov. provide any paperwork related to his dyslexia diagnosis at any time of his life?
Newsom’s comms team just now tells me to “fuck off.”
Think @GavinNewsom’s comms team is losing it today? pic.twitter.com/oT3GoK5Cxi
— Susan Crabtree (@susancrabtree) February 23, 2026
And this wasn’t an intrusive set of questions, either:
Here’s the exact questions I asked his taxpayer-funded comms team to elicit the “fuck you” response — I live in California, BTW. pic.twitter.com/tqTv8FKwRK
— Susan Crabtree (@susancrabtree) February 23, 2026
If this is the kind of thing that’ll cause Newsom’s peeps to crash out with an f-bomb at every question, it’s going to be a long two years until 2028.
Nor was the comms team just crashing out in private emails. Here they are on Newsom’s social media accounts — which we already assume he didn’t run, but considering his recent claims of illiteracy, I guess we have confirmation:
You didn’t give a shit about the President of the United States of America posting an ape video of President Obama or calling African nations shitholes — but you’re going to call me racist for talking about my lifelong struggle with dyslexia?
Spare me your fake fucking outrage,… https://t.co/ABNZJQJLcj
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) February 23, 2026
Jesse, you already have one. https://t.co/pCDgZpMORO
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) February 23, 2026
Just so we’re clear here, we’re talking about an editing accident that included a split-second clip of a “Lion King”-themed video from auto-scrolling reels and comparing it with Newsom’s deliberate decision to call himself stupid in front of the black mayor of a largely black city in a swing state where black voters could make a difference.
We’re also dealing with the nomination in a coalition that shrieks like banshees if you violate the smallest racial piety, whereas the GOP is over this nonsense. So, excuse us if we notice your dog-whistling solecisms because your party insists we do, Gavin.
And there’s the kicker: Someone who says he can’t read is throwing a fit over a president who not only can but challenges Democrats to IQ tests, which also send them into conniptions. I’d call for summary judgment on this.
But mostly, I’d call for summary judgment on the fact that we seem to be in an f-bomb-throwing competition now that we’ve poked Gavin on the genesis of his latest “poorigin” story. I understand that this is sensitive and difficult — but what does the governor believe that the presidential race is? And why did he think that crashing out (repeatedly) was the appropriate response? The questions pretty much answer themselves.
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