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California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed this week that he would stop a reported Trump administration effort to unleash energy production off California’s coast in a social media post that was widely criticized by conservatives and experts who spoke to Fox News Digital.
“Dead on arrival,” Newsom said in a post on X on Tuesday in response to a Washington Post article reporting that Trump officials are mulling plans to propose oil drilling off California’s coast “for the first time in decades.”
Newsom’s post, viewed over 3 million times, drew quick pushback from conservatives.
“Dead on arrival” is what @GavinNewsom says about Trump proposal to drill offshore California,” ophthalmologist and commentator Houman David Hemmati posted on X.
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“The SAME man who’s been pushing for overpriced, unreliable, environmentally catastrophic offshore wind.”
Gabriella Hoffman, director of the Independent Women’s Forum Center for Energy and Conservation, told Fox News Digital that new offshore oil and gas projects “should be explored in California” and that the projects are “safe” and “have a minimal environmental footprint due to improved technology and increased safety measures.”
“California is considered an oil island, despite having plentiful onshore and offshore recoverable oil reserves,” Hoffman said. “Governor Newsom purports to hate oil and gas, yet 60% of California’s petroleum is imported from foreign nations including Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Guyana. That’s unsettling, but a natural consequence of forcing a 100% transition to renewables.”
Newsom was the most prominent American official to attend the COP30 global climate conference in Belém, Brazil, this week — using the platform to criticize the absent Trump administration.
The White House mocked the trip, noting California’s continued rank among the highest in U.S. energy costs.
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In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Newsom’s office said, “The Trump administration has yet to formally share with us their plan, but expensive and riskier offshore drilling would put our communities at risk and undermine the economic stability of our coastal economies. Given recent history, we’re not surprised by the lack of communication or their lack of thought into how their actions will impact Americans. The Trump administration’s focus continues to be on the next grift, and not the well-being of our people and communities.”
Newsom’s office put out a summary of his visit to the conference, saying it shows California is “leading by example” and proving that “climate action and economic growth go hand in hand.”
Hoffman told Fox News Digital that while every energy project has “environmental trade-offs,” Newsom’s climate agenda has resulted in renewables getting “a pass.”
“Governor Newsom desires to litter my home state’s coastline with offshore wind farms that are eyesores, produce expensive unreliable electricity, and threaten fish and marine mammals,” Hoffman said. “Once decommissioned, oil rigs are converted to sanctuaries under the ‘rigs to reef’ program to support marine life — including endangered fish species — with habitat. Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wisely laid the groundwork for this conservation program in 2010 when he signed AB 2503 into law.”
Mark Bednar, former communications director for Speaker Kevin McCarthy, told Fox News Digital that the Trump administration is focused on “expanding America’s energy dominance through further exploration” and cautioned Newsom on being out of step with that.
“Right now, adversaries like Russia, China, Venezuela, and Iran are working around the clock to expand their economic and geopolitical footholds, and any American lawmaker who opposes moves to grow America’s energy dominance will have a hard time explaining to the American people why unilaterally tying one arm behind our back is good for America,” Bednar said.
Ultimately, Newsom’s climate policies, according to Hoffman, “invited energy scarcity in the Golden State.”
“California has the second-highest electricity rates after Hawaii. Californians also pay the highest gas tax rate of any U.S. state,” Hoffman said. “If two oil refineries close by 2026, California residents will soon pay $8 per gallon at the gas pump. That’s unsustainable.
“California’s energy crisis is entirely self-inflicted. New offshore oil and gas projects, along with new nuclear, geothermal, and natural gas, can reduce energy prices and make the Golden State energy independent once again.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Interior for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Charles Creitz contributed to this report.
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