California Governor Gavin Newsom has lashed out at President Donald Trump’s special envoy Richard Grenell for pushing claims that his wife was out shopping during the protests in Los Angeles.
Grenell, a White House special envoy for special missions, claimed that the governor and Jennifer Siebel Newsom “don’t care about the chaos” after a report claimed the first lady of California was shopping in Beverly Hills Monday.
“She came to Los Angeles to shop using her $4k purse,” Grenell posted on X early Wednesday. “@GavinNewsom and his wife don’t care about the chaos.”
Newsom’s representatives furiously denied the claims.
“This story is an outright lie and needs to be retracted entirely,” the Governor’s press office responded on X Wednesday, quoting Grenell’s post. “The photo is from months ago — when the first partner was picking up skin care products. She is recovering from a past skin cancer diagnosis, you SICK people.”
But Grenell, a regular critic of Newsom, doubled down on his claims and accused the couple of “pathetic spin.”
In 2023, Jennifer Newsom revealed she had undergone surgery for the second time to treat a type of skin cancer.
“This is pathetic spin from @GavinNewsom’s wife,” Grenell said in a follow up post. “Using a previous skin cancer diagnosis to explain why you are tone deaf to the LA riots is shameful.”
“I had 5 rounds of R-CHOP chemotherapy for 18 weeks,” Grenell added. “It’s offensive for the First Partner of California (this is the title she demands we use) to use cancer as a reason you need to be in Beverly Hills picking up skincare products while the riots are unfolding around you.”
The Independent has contacted the State Department for comment. Representatives for the governor could not be immediately reached.
It follows the governor’s televised address Tuesday where he lambasted Trump’s “brazen abuse of power.” Newsom said the presence of troops was exacerbating tensions and asked for an emergency injunction to halt the deployment, arguing it is “unlawful” and “unnecessary.” A hearing is set Thursday.
In the latest developments in the city, the downtown curfew enacted by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in response to the president’s escalation of the response to immigration protests has been lifted.
Meanwhile, approximately 700 Marines mobilized by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will arrive in the city “soon” after training in Seal Beach, 30 miles south.
The administration is now considering deploying troops to other cities to quell further protests, an official told the New York Times.
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