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California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ongoing feud with the White House was on full display Thursday in Davos when he cracked a joke about Trump “kneepads,” before acknowledging the increasingly crude exchanges between the two sides are “deeply unbecoming.”
The moment began with Newsom brandishing what he described as “Trump signature series kneepads,” prompting laughter from the audience before he shifted to a more serious tone.
Speaking at a special World Economic Forum session moderated by Ben Smith, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Semafor, the California governor framed his provocations as a deliberate strategy to “put a mirror up” to President Donald Trump and his allies.
“It’s not what we should be doing. But you’ve got to point out the absurdity,” Newsom said.
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a knee protector at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
He pointed to recent remarks from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling him “Patrick Bateman meets Sparkle Beach Ken” as an example of how senior Trump administration officials have increasingly leaned into personal attacks.
“We’re deeply in their head. I think the affordability agenda appears to be I’m living rent-free in the Trump administration’s head,” he told Smith.
Newsom admitted Trump’s “great strength,” however, is his ability to detect weakness.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks at the 56th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (Harun Ozalp/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“That’s his gift, but you punch back. You fight fire with fire. You display conviction and strength. It’s a different relationship. And so, my relationship to this moment is reflected in that. I’m not naive. These guys are going to try to take me down, not just my state,” he said.
Newsom’s press office said Wednesday on X that the USA House at Davos denied the governor entry to speak with the media after Fortune, the event’s official media partner, invited him, citing pressure from the White House and State Department.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom listens as President Donald Trump speaks at the World Economic Forum at the Davos Congress Center in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 21, 2026. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told Fox News in response to the claim: “No one in Davos knows who third-rate governor Newscum is or why he is frolicking around Switzerland instead of fixing the many problems he created in California.”
The exchange was part of a broader social media back-and-forth between Newsom’s press office and Trump administration allies in recent days, including the official White House “Rapid Response 47” account that mocked the governor while Trump was speaking in Davos.
Ashley Carnahan is a writer at Fox News Digital.
