Republican firebrand Vivek Ramaswamy sharpened his criticism of California Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday, drawing a provocative comparison between the Democrat and former Alabama Governor George Wallace — the segregationist who defied federal desegregation orders during the civil rights era.“There’s another Democrat governor from US history that Gavin Newsom is starting to resemble — George Wallace,” Ramaswamy wrote on X, drawing a controversial line between Wallace’s defiance of desegregation orders in the 1960s and Newsom’s current opposition to President Trump’s deployment of federal forces to assist in immigration raids.Wallace, a symbol of segregation-era defiance, famously resisted federal orders to desegregate Alabama schools, prompting former President John F Kennedy in 1963 and later President Lyndon B Johnson in 1965 to federalize the Alabama National Guard. Former US President Johnson overrode Wallace’s refusal to protect civil rights demonstrators during the Selma to Montgomery march, calling in troops to ensure their safety — a decision that became a defining moment in American history.Now, more than half a century later, the echoes of that federal-state clash are surfacing again.“I actually like Gavin Newsom as a person, but he won’t like this,” Ramaswamy said. “George Wallace fought against federal desegregation; Gavin Newsom now fights against federal deportations. Wallace wanted segregated cities; Newsom wants sanctuary cities. Wallace blocked school doors; Newsom blocks ICE vans.”His remarks come amid a deepening standoff between the White House and Sacramento, after President Trump sent thousands of National Guard troops and 700 US Marines to downtown Los Angeles to secure federal buildings and assist ICE in immigration raids. Newsom, who was not consulted in the decision, condemned the move as “illegal and immoral” and has taken the administration to court.“Donald Trump is putting fuel on this fire. Commandeering a state’s National Guard without consulting the Governor of that state is illegal and immoral,” Newsom wrote on X earlier this week.For Ramaswamy, the symbolism is deliberate, and sharp. He accuses Newsom of grandstanding for political gain, arguing that the California governor is “rallying radicals” and obstructing federal authority as part of a larger strategy to appeal to progressive voters ahead of a potential 2028 presidential run.“It’s the same playbook all over again: dodge the feds, rally the radicals, and do it in front of the cameras to pander to their base,” Ramaswamy said. “And mark my words: Gavin Newsom’s presidential ambitions will end the same way George Wallace’s did — in the dustbins of history.”
