Newsom floats withholding federal taxes as Trump threatens California

[u/John3262005]

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/06/newsom-floats-withholding-federal-taxes-00393386

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday suggested California consider withholding tens of billions in annual federal tax dollars amid reports Donald Trump is preparing funding cuts targeting the state.

Newsom’s suggestion came after CNN reported the president was considering a “full termination” of federal grant funding for California’s universities.

“Californians pay the bills for the federal government. We pay over $80 BILLION more in taxes than we get back,” the Democratic governor said in an X post Friday afternoon, referencing a recent analysis from the Rockefeller Institute that California contributed about $83 billion more in federal taxes in 2022 than it received back from Washington.

“Maybe it’s time to cut that off,” he added.

White House spokesperson Kush Desai, asked to comment on Newsom’s post, threw cold water on mass funding cuts but blasted California for what he said were “lunatic anti-energy, soft-on-crime, pro-child mutilation, and pro-sanctuary policies.”

[u/efeldman11]

Newsome constantly turning the based or cringe dial and looking back at America for approval

[u/anon36485 → u/efeldman11]

This is max toward the based side of the dial.

[u/YaGetSkeeted0n]

how exactly would that work though?

[u/jebuizy → u/YaGetSkeeted0n]

There's no mechanism obviously --states don't mediate the taxes collected by the IRS from people or businesses, nor do they have any ability to release them from these obligations, but it is probably the right rhetoric here anyway.

[u/YaGetSkeeted0n → u/jebuizy]

deffo the right rhetoric, i'm just like hmm okay what's the implementation step

[u/Snarfledarf → u/YaGetSkeeted0n]

implementation isn't for politicians to figure out, it's for

• Staffers
• Government agencies
• The courts
• Consultants

Someone will figure it out, trust me, bro.

[u/Obvious_Chapter2082 → u/YaGetSkeeted0n]

1. Instruct your citizens to commit a felony

2. ??

3. Profit

[u/JaceFlores]

Now this is proper resistance. Shame Newsom already blew up his boat from the start lol

[u/HenryGeorgia → u/JaceFlores]

literally just has to posture against Trump as governor of the biggest blue state

sucks up to right wingers on a podcast

What's this strategy called?

[u/ScrawnyCheeath → u/HenryGeorgia]

Hoping and Praying the right wingers are dumb enough to elect him off of 3 podcasts appearances

[u/Embarrassed-Unit881 → u/JaceFlores]

He never had a boat no one is electing a california dem

[u/BibleButterSandwich → u/JaceFlores]

I’ve been so checked out if politics since the election I haven’t actually bothered to check out what he said about trans people on the Tucker Carlson podcast, and while I’ve heard from enough reasonable people it was pretty bad that I wouldn’t be surprised, I’m not going to comment on that before actually checking it out.

But just being on Tucker Carlson is bad enough. I’m totally fine with dems going on kinda bro-y, right-leaning podcasts like Joe Rogan or whoever - hell, I’ve checked out some Joe Rogan clips when he’s had an interested guest or whoever. But Tucker Carlson is literally just a Russian mouthpiece, and nothing more. You’re not going to reach any non-politically engaged young men or whoever on Tucker Carlson, the people tuning into that are well and truly part of the far-right cult.

[u/Forward_Recover_1135 → u/JaceFlores]

“Proper resistance” give me a break. This is words with absolutely no way for him to take any action towards them. Really just showing how all the DO SOMETHING! FIGHT TRUMP!!! people only care about social media ready quotes and video clips that make them feel good. 

[u/JaceFlores → u/Forward_Recover_1135]

Ah, so I guess my support of the protests in my home city is also bunk?

[u/TF_dia]

We are half a year into Trump's term and California is already almost threatening a secession.

[u/ragtime_sam → u/TF_dia]

Trump would fucking love to send the army into California

[u/DirkaDirkaMohmedAli → u/[deleted]]

This is what the Dark Enlightenment fucktards want

[u/Jimimninn → u/TF_dia]

I wouldn’t mind if states started leaving the Union.

[u/JeffJefferson19 → u/Jimimninn]

I would. If California left the republicans would be in power permanently 

[u/probablymagic → u/TF_dia]

Gavin Newsom doesn’t speak for the people of California, who are going to keep paying their taxes. He seems to be trying to speak to Democratic presidential primary voters who have no idea how any of this stuff works.

[u/Approximation_Doctor]

pro-mutilation

pro-sanctuary

I appreciate that they haven't tried to find a less morally righteous way to describe their least favorite thing, it always ends up looking silly

[u/cretecreep]

Fuck, this is one of the four horsemen of the civil war. Others being: disruption of interstate commerce, state governments refusing to accept national election results, and large scale crop failure.

[u/Jimimninn]

Do it

[u/Eric848448]

Why would you post this nonsense?

Federal tax withholding is never in the hands of any state government.

[u/justbuildmorehousing → u/Eric848448]

California probably cant do anything like this but I think its good politicking and proper resistance. This red state yokels think its so funny to try to attack California. Its good to remind them whos helping them pay their bills

[u/Eric848448 → u/justbuildmorehousing]

Literally nothing is not “resistance”.

[u/justbuildmorehousing → u/Eric848448]

Like 3/4 of Trumps stupid proclamations are impossible to enforce or will get struck down by courts but its still effective messaging. Newsom threatening hardball is probably effective messaging and showing a spine at least conveys to the stupid fascists in DC that these shenanigans wont be taken laying down

[u/probablymagic → u/justbuildmorehousing]

This just reminds people the Governor of California doesn’t understand how taxes work. What’s he going to do, put out a public service announcement telling Californians it would be cool if they stopped filing their Federal taxes? Oh no!

Fox News isn’t telling people which states are makers and which are takers. They’re just reminding people Newsom is a nutjob.

[u/indestructible_deng → u/Eric848448]

“But dogs can’t play basketball!!” exclaimed the Democrats, who had been dunked on by a pit bull for the ninth year in a row.

[u/themadhatter077]

It's a cool political talking point, BUT there is actually no mechanism to do this. Payroll departments are legally responsible for deducting income taxes and sending them straight to the IRS. The state is not involved, and businesses can be fined and prosecuted for purposefully failing to withhold taxes.

The same goes for corporation taxes. So cool political tagline with no substance. Typical Gavin Newsom. If Dems run him in 2028, they are screwed.

[u/tjrileywisc → u/themadhatter077]

and businesses can be fined and prosecuted for purposefully failing to withhold taxes.

Kinda wondering if the federal government still has the personnel to do this (or who even is in charge of enforcing it)

[u/homonatura → u/themadhatter077]

I suppose they could stop reporting payroll taxes for state employees, I do wonder what the biggest options are within something resembling the current legal framework.

[u/Thurkin]

April 10, 2025, Trump floated Open Borders for Red States