Newsom tells Shapiro ‘so be it’ if trans issue is political barrier

California Gov. Gavin Newsom agreed with Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro on Thursday that whether boys can become girls is one of the most important issues for the Democratic Party.

“I think one of the biggest failures of the Democratic Party in the last election cycle was its unwillingness to say whether the idea that a boy could be a girl was right or wrong,” Shapiro said on the “This Gavin Newsom” podcast.

Newsom and Shapiro had a back-and-forth about the policy of allowing teachers to hide from parents that their children are transitioning socially at school without the parents’ knowledge, but the governor argued that it was statistically a very small problem.

“We’re talking about very few people struggling with gender identity issues,” Newsom said. “I stand with Gov. Spencer Cox in saying there has never been so much attention given to so few people on so many of these issues.”

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“The problem is, when you say a guy can be a girl at the electoral level to go into politics, I think that’s a barrier to entry for a lot of people,” Shapiro replied.

“If that’s your barrier to listening to people on countless other issues, I respect that,” Newsom said. “So be it. So be it.”

“I find it strange that even if you want to have public policy that pursues something different, we can’t recognize that boys and girls are two different things and that a boy can’t be a girl,” Shapiro said. “Why is this so difficult?”

“Yes, I understand your point of view,” Newsom replied, later saying Shapiro was “a man of facts rather than empathy.”

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Many liberal figures argue that transgenderism is exaggerated as a cultural issue and concerns only a small portion of the population; But conservatives say changing culture and policies in schools are worth discussing. (iStock)

Newsom has nuanced this issue in recent months.

In March, Newsom said in an interview with Charlie Kirk that biological males are an issue of fairness in women’s sports, calling it “deeply unfair.”

He also spoke about the issue to Ezra Klein of The New York Times.

“This is an issue that no one wants to hear about because 80% of the people listening disagree with my stance on this issue. But this is coming from my heart, not just my head. This was not a political evolution,” he said.

“I want seeing trans children. I have a transgender godson. There is no other governor who has signed more pro-trans legislation than I have. “No one has been a stronger advocate for the LGBTQ community.”

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California Governor Gavin Newsom referred to Shapiro as “a man of facts rather than empathy.” (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

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