California Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent pilgrimage to the White House was nothing short of a political debasement and a craven display of servility before President Donald Trump. In a performance as pitiful as it was revealing, Newsom eagerly sought to “turn a page” and “move past the rhetoric and noise” of the election cycle, demonstrating that when it comes to the interests of the ruling class, partisan divisions dissolve into thin air.

Ostensibly, Newsom’s visit was to secure federal disaster aid for the Los Angeles County wildfires. But the real priority was the same as it always is for the Democratic Party: maintaining a seat at the oligarchic table. He was there not to defend the working class, not to advocate for the thousands who lost their homes and livelihoods, but to ensure an understanding of the agreement within the circles of power. His performance underscored his fundamental alignment with the financial elite rather than the workers of California.

Newsom’s language throughout this meeting was drenched in deference. “There’s a familiarity, and there was a relationship that was born of a crisis around COVID,” he gushed, lauding Trump for having “come through for California” during the pandemic. It is a grotesque rewriting of history. The reality is that Trump’s COVID policies were criminal, resulting in mass death and suffering. That Newsom now seeks to find common ground on this subject is not just pathetic—it is damning.

He insisted on emphasizing his “positive” and “substantive” conversation with Trump, a transparent attempt to ingratiate himself despite the fact the president openly despises him. Just two weeks ago, as Trump mocked him as “Newscum,” Newsom was waiting at the Los Angeles Airport, eager for a moment of presidential acknowledgment. 

But now the name calling is forgiven and the love affair has been restored, as Newsom stated: “When we got off the tarmac, I felt like we were in the middle of a conversation we had 4½ years ago.”

This display was not about securing aid for Californians; it was about demonstrating to the ruling class that Newsom—a multimillionaire of his own right—can be trusted to play by their rules while Trump carries out massive attacks on social programs and democratic rights.

What makes this meeting even more contemptible is what Newsom refused to say. He had a direct opportunity to confront Trump on his fascist attacks on the Constitution, his raids against immigrants and his plans to dismember social programs. Instead, he remained a sycophant at the feet of the führer, willingly playing his role in the complicity of bipartisanship. Newsom’s cowardice was not an oversight—it was an expression of the class interests he and the Democratic Party represent, which ultimately align with Trump’s reactionary agenda in the face of a rising tide of workers and students’ opposition.

This visit marks the latest chapter in Newsom’s long history of capitulating to reactionary forces when politically expedient. In November 2018, as lieutenant governor and governor-elect, he walked through the charred remains of the city of Paradise with Trump in the aftermath of the Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history that caused 85 deaths, displaced more than 50,000 people and destroyed nearly 19,000 structures.

When the pandemic struck, he relied on Trump’s federal government to secure medical supplies, ignoring the fact that the administration was actively sabotaging public health efforts. Now, in 2025, he performs the same ritual: feigning opposition when it serves his political brand but crawling back when his position within the establishment is at stake.

One of the most revealing aspects of Newsom’s servility is his refusal to challenge Trump’s draconian policies against immigrants, a population that has been under relentless attack by both Democrats and Republicans. One of former president Joe Biden’s final acts was an anti-immigrant raid in California cynically dubbed “Return to Sender” that ended up with the arrest of 78 workers and about which Newsom remained completely silent.

Instead, in a stunt meant for public consumption, he meekly told Trump that he would sign bills to fund court challenges against his administration, quickly adding, “I said I never used the phrase ‘Trump-proofing.’” Even in this, he felt the need to reassure Trump that he was not truly opposing him, merely engaging in the superficial legal maneuvers as a sop to popular anger.

The broader context of this meeting cannot be ignored. Newsom is not an aberration within the Democratic Party; he is emblematic of it. The party’s leadership has long abandoned any pretense of fighting for working people and has fully proven its reliability to the financial elite. While they posture as an opposition party, they are fundamentally committed to preserving the system of capitalist exploitation and the supremacy of US imperialism. 

The Democrats prove on a daily basis that they fear the working class far more than they object to Trump’s fascist program. Newsom’s trip is just another example of how the two-party system functions: rhetorical opposition during elections, but seamless cooperation when it comes to maintaining the socioeconomic order.

A particularly revealing statement came when Democratic State Senator Henry Stern, whose district was impacted by the recent wildfires, declared, “Democrats are prepared to fight Trump when necessary, but disasters demand that they work together.” This followed Newsom’s own comments to the same theme: “In a time of need and crisis, people need to see their representatives working together.” 

These statements lay bare the essence of the Democratic Party’s collaboration with Trump: in the face of a historic social crisis, partisan differences are so superficial that they are willing to join hands with a fascistic administration to ensure that the working class bears the brunt of a disaster that the financial elite is preparing to exploit. The ruling class—whether under Democratic or Republican leadership—never sacrifices its own wealth and power; it is always the workers who are forced to pay.

Much of the media commentary has framed this visit in terms of Newsom’s supposed 2028 presidential ambitions. While this may be true, which is a warning of how far to the right the Democratic Party is willing to go, the more significant revelation is what this says about his class loyalties. He has more in common with the billionaires who dominate the Trump administration than with the millions of workers in California suffering from homelessness, eroding living standards, the recent wildfires and corporate exploitation. His goal is not to alleviate their suffering, but to maintain the illusion of opposition while preserving the privileges of the capitalist elite.

This is the fundamental lesson of Newsom’s meeting with Trump: there is no genuine opposition within the ruling class. In the end, the Democrats and Republicans alike serve the same corporate masters and financial interests. They may trade insults, they may engage in performative fights, but when the cameras are off, they work together to maintain the dominance of the capitalist system. 

Newsom’s pathetic prostration before Trump is just the latest proof that, for the working class, neither party offers a way forward. The fight against this corrupt system will not be won by “calling your congressperson” or in backroom meetings between establishment politicians—it will only be won through the independent political struggle of the united global working class for socialism against the entire capitalist order.