US: California governor to release new ad against Trump's tariffs

Los Angeles, May 10 (IANS) California Governor Gavin Newsom will release a national ad to show his message against the US President Donald Trump's tariffs policy, which Newsom said risks "ending America's run as the world greatest economy."

According to a report from the Politico on Friday, the 30-second ad is scheduled to run on "Fox and Friends" this weekend, noting this move will "simultaneously cast Newsom as cheerleader for the Golden State's economy and top critic of the president's signature policy."

It "marks a return to Newsom's well-worn playbook of goading Republicans on their home turf. It is also a notable escalation of the governor's antagonism toward Trump after months of striving to defuse tensions with the White House," the report said.

The ad, which was posted on YouTube on Thursday, showed Newsom was speaking direct-to-camera against a backdrop of the Port of Oakland, reports Xinhua news agency.

Newsom boasted about California's recent ascent to the world's fourth-largest economy, crediting that achievement to "reducing trade barriers and delivering for American consumers," and warned that "the Trump administration is putting all of that at risk, halting delivery of essential goods through our ports today."

He then warned that Trump's tariff policy would lead to a slowdown of goods coming into the country, raising the spectre of empty store shelves during the back-to-school or Christmas shopping season.

"It's school backpacks in a few months, it'll be Christmas toys, these tariffs punish families," the governor said.

The ad was paid for out of Newsom's 2022 governor campaign account, the report said, adding that a spokesperson declined to share how much the ad buy cost.

--IANS

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