Gov Gavin Newsom says California filed 52 lawsuits against Trump administration
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom used his final State of the State address on Thursday to highlight the state’s court fights with the federal government, saying the state has filed dozens of lawsuits against the Trump administration.
The Democrat framed the legal battles as a dispute over presidential power, telling lawmakers and attendees that “no one is above the law, least of all the president of the United States.”
“We went to court and challenged this overreach by the administration, of course protecting our people,” Newsom said.
The governor highlighted the lawsuit filed during a special session and tied the legal efforts to what he described as federal actions that harm Californians.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom delivered his State of the State address at the California State Capitol in Sacramento on Thursday. (Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
“By the way, fifty-two lawsuits funded by you have been filed in this special session that you all chair,” Newsom said, adding that the lawsuits involve “approximately $168 billion.” illegally frozen federal resources “These belong to our schools, these belong to our hospitals, these belong to our senior classes.”
Newsom said the court strategy is already paying off.
“We won the petition for emergency relief,” he said, adding that California had “affirmed the Constitution of the United States as the supreme law of the land.”
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California Governor Gavin Newsom after delivering his final State of the State address on the California State Capitol Capitol Floor on Thursday in Sacramento. (Jason Henry/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Addressing President Donald Trump, Newsom said, “You cannot cut off critical food aid to millions of people,” adding: “You cannot send the military into American cities without justification, and you cannot cruelly and illegally cut off funding for medical research, homeland security or disaster response.”
Newsom’s emphasis on legal challenges comes as the Trump administration launched a federal investigation into allegations of fraud tied to California programs, including homelessness spending, and as a top federal prosecutor publicly criticized the state’s oversight.
Newsom’s office has denied those accusations, saying the governor is preventing fraud and protecting taxpayers. Later in his speech, Newsom turned to homelessness and called on counties to take a more aggressive approach.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom will deliver his final state of the state address on Thursday. (Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
“I say this with love and respect to the districts; there is no need for excuses anymore. It is time to get people off the streets and out of the camps,” he said.
Newsom also defended California’s high-speed rail project, calling it “the nation’s first high-speed rail system.”
“The entire environmental cleanup has been completed,” Newsom said, claiming that “more than 60 miles of guideway for direct lane lanes have been completed in the Central Valley.”
Newsom criticized big investors in housing, warning that “institutional investors are snapping up the homes of hundreds and thousands of people at the same time.”
“These investors are crushing the dream of homeownership,” he said, adding: “I think it is a shame that we have allowed private equity firms to become some of the largest homeowners here in our cities.”
Republican leaders responded critically to Newsom’s remarks.
California Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones called the address a “fancy sham job,” accusing the governor of “working too hard to deceive the nation.”
Assemblyman James Gallagher likewise dismissed the speech as “more of the same” and argued that it was time for what he described as “third wave politics” of both parties working together to solve California’s problems.
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A statewide election to replace term-limited Governor Newsom is scheduled for November 2026.
Newsom’s office did not provide additional comment to Fox News Digital beyond disclosing the case figure on Thursday’s State of the State address.
Fox News Digital’s Madison Colombo contributed to this story.
