San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, a Democrat eyeing California’s governorship, just tossed a live grenade into his party’s golden boy, Governor Gavin Newsom, grading his performance a middling C on CNN’s The Lead. When pressed by Jake Tapper, Mahan didn’t mince words: Newsom’s tenure isn’t stellar, hovering in that uninspiring C range amid California’s litany of woes—skyrocketing homelessness, a ballooning budget deficit north of $70 billion, and businesses fleeing the state faster than you can say tax hike. This isn’t some rogue Republican jab; it’s intra-party shade from a rising Dem star who’s polling competitively in the 2026 primary. Mahan’s critique signals fractures in the progressive monolith, where even loyalists are whispering that Newsom’s flashy national ambitions (think VP shortlists and Fox News debates) have left the Golden State tarnished.
For the 2A community, this C-grade bombshell is a glimmer of daylight in California’s gun-grab dystopia. Newsom’s reign has been a non-stop assault on Second Amendment rights: universal background checks on ammo, one-gun-per-month purchase limits, red flag laws weaponized against law-abiding citizens, and the state’s endless lawsuits against the NRA and firearm makers. Mahan’s lukewarm assessment implicitly nods to these failures—crime surging in sanctuary cities like his own San Jose, where soft-on-crime policies under Newsom have emboldened criminals while disarming the innocent. If Mahan wins in ’26, his pragmatic pivot (he’s pushed for more police funding and cracking down on retail theft) could slow the anti-gun zealotry, especially as national Dems like Biden crater in polls over inflation and border chaos. Don’t pop the champagne yet, but this intraparty sniping erodes Newsom’s invincible aura, potentially stalling California’s next wave of confiscation schemes like the pending assault weapons ban expansion.
The implications ripple nationwide: a weakened Newsom dims his star as the anti-Trump resistance figurehead, buying time for pro-2A forces to rally in swing states. With Mahan positioning as the results-oriented alternative, 2A advocates should watch his every move—will he dial back the extremism to appeal to moderates, or double down? Either way, this C-grade confession is pro-gun catnip, proving even California Democrats are tiring of the failed Newsom experiment. Eyes on 2026; the Second Amendment might just catch a break.
