Gavin Newsom is a ‘pretty boy,’ and California needs a ‘beast,’ GOP recall candidate says

Hoping to convince voters that he can bring “beastly” solutions to California’s problems, Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox kicked off a three day tour in Sacramento on Tuesday, appearing alongside a live, 1,000-pound California brown bear named Tag.

“My background – growing up without a father, working my way up – gives me the toughness, the beastliness, if you want to put it that way, to address these problems and call it like it is,” Cox told reporters at Miller Regional Park, while trainers tossed shredded chicken to the bear behind him.

Newsom is a “pretty boy” who has spent his career climbing the political ladder, Cox said.

“It’s a choice between the Beauty and the Beast. Well, we’ve seen what the beauty has done. I think it’s time to unleash the beast.”

Cox, who ran and lost to Newsom in 2018, was one of the first Republicans to launch a bid for governor early in recall effort. Now, as the recall election looks certain to qualify for the ballot and candidates like Caitlyn Jenner are jumping in, Cox is ramping up his efforts with campaign stops and television ads.

Cox describes himself as a “successful businessman and entrepreneur” who wants to fight special interests and fix the housing, electricity, water and affordability problems plaguing Californians. Like many Republicans and recall supporters, Cox slammed Newsom for school closures, his connections to powerful liberals like Nancy Pelosi, and his infamous dinner with lobbyists at the French Laundry.

“These problems and many more are the results of pretty boy Gavin Newsom catering to the interest groups and catering to the lobbyists,” Cox said. “It’s all about the next rung on the ladder for him.”

Newsom beat Cox by a wide margin just three years ago, winning 61.9% of the vote to Cox’s 38.1%. Still, the Republican candidate says he’s confident Californians will choose him as a replacement in a recall.

“I got millions of votes, even though I wasn’t a career politician and I certainly wasn’t a celebrity. That’s a base to build on,” he said. “I’m not a household name, I’m not funded by billionaires like our pretty boy governor. I’m just a business guy like a lot of people out there.”

Cox’s campaign has been largely self-funded, starting with $10 million of his own money.

“I feel that’s a good use of the resources. There’s a lot of charities, but you know what, if I could help the people of this state and change what our government is doing, I could really make life better for millions of people,” he said.

Cox is also shelling out $5 million for a major ad blitz to start Tuesday, with a TV spot airing on broadcast and cable networks. The three minute-long ad, titled “Meet the BEAST” portrays Newsom as a “pretty boy” with political affluence who has mired California in problems because of his own political interests.

“Once it was the world’s dream to live in our sunshine,” an ominous voice says in the ad. “What happened? Politics. We chose pretty over accomplished.”

Cox is also traveling to the French Laundry on Tuesday where he’ll bash the governor’s November dinner with lobbyists. The Republican candidate shied away from questions about the potential for Donald Trump to weigh in on the recall, though he did say he hasn’t had any contact with the former president regarding his campaign.

The recall, Cox said, is evidence that a wide swath of Californians are looking for a change, not just Republicans.

“Independents and Democrats signed this recall. There’s a Silicon Valley billionaire that gave $100,000 to the recall... There’s no conservative or liberal way to provide electricity. There’s no conservative or liberal way to provide water, there’s no conservative or liberal housing out there. People want an affordable and livable life,” he said.

“Mr. Newsom checks all the boxes on politics. He talks a good game about diversity and inequality, but really and truly he’s made life worse for people.”

When asked about Cox’s remarks on his performance, the governor, speaking at a press conference with firefighters on Tuesday, said he’s proud of California’s financial position and continued progress in recovering from the pandemic.

“The best is yet to come,” Newsom said. “The state is recovering. The state is back on its feet. Our kids increasingly are back in in-person instruction. We have the lowest positivity rate in America. We’re extinguishing this disease... getting it behind us.”

This story was originally published May 4, 2021 at 12:08 PM.