You probably didn't have "Navy SEAL interviews California Governor" on your 2025 bingo card. But here we are. When Shawn Ryan sat down with Gavin Newsom for a massive four-hour marathon on The Shawn Ryan Show, the internet basically imploded. It wasn't just another canned political presser. It was weird, tense, and surprisingly human.
Most people expected a bloodbath. Ryan is a former SEAL and CIA contractor who generally caters to a veteran, right-leaning audience. Newsom is the poster boy for progressive California. On paper, they should have been screaming at each other within ten minutes. Instead, we got a deep dive into everything from dyslexia to tactical handguns.
The Gift That Left Everyone Confused
Let’s talk about the moment that launched a thousand memes. About halfway through, Shawn Ryan did something nobody expected: he handed Gavin Newsom a gun. Not just any gun, but a California-compliant SIG Sauer P365 X-Macro.
Newsom’s reaction? He smiled. He actually looked genuinely stoked.
"I'm not anti-gun at all," Newsom told Ryan while holding the firearm.
This sparked an immediate firestorm. Second Amendment advocates called it a "theater" or a "rebranding stunt." They pointed out that Newsom has spent years pushing for a 28th Amendment to the Constitution that would effectively gut the right to bear arms. On the other side, some progressives were horrified to see their governor "cozying up" to a MAGA-adjacent podcaster and handling a weapon.
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It was a masterclass in political optics—or a total disaster, depending on who you ask. Newsom tried to thread a very thin needle by saying he supports "common sense gun safety" while respecting the "gift." Honestly, it felt like a glitch in the simulation.
COVID-19 and the "We Didn't Know" Defense
The conversation eventually shifted to the elephant in the room: California’s pandemic response. Shawn Ryan didn't hold back here. He asked Newsom straight up if the lockdowns were a mistake, specifically pointing to the mental health crisis and the closure of outdoor spaces like beaches.
Newsom’s answer was... interesting. He admitted that shutting down beaches was probably a bad call.
"We were worried it was airborne, and about people being outside," he said. He basically argued that they were flying blind in the early days.
But Ryan pushed. He noted that California kept restrictions in place way longer than other states. Critics, like journalist Katy Grimes, have been quick to point out that California was the first state to lock down and one of the last to fully "open." Newsom’s pivot to "we realized after the fact" didn't sit well with many who lost businesses or whose kids missed years of in-person school.
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The "Trans Issue" and the 26-Year-Old Brain
Perhaps the most controversial segment of the whole Shawn Ryan Gavin Newsom interview involved the discussion on gender-affirming care. This is where the tone got really heavy.
They started talking about the "masculinity crisis" in America. Newsom lamented that many kids today aren't having relationships or even "sexual relations." But then things took a turn toward trans athletes and medical care for minors.
- The Age Factor: Both Ryan and Newsom agreed that the human brain isn't fully developed until age 26.
- The Sports Conflict: Newsom admitted that "your child may not have that same opportunity to get on the podium if a trans athlete is competing."
- The Controversy: This specific quote sent shockwaves through the Democratic base. For a governor who has signed multiple bills protecting trans rights, suggesting that trans inclusion is "denying other people theirs" was a massive departure from his usual talking points.
It’s rare to hear Newsom admit that these issues are "novel" or "tough." He mentioned reading the Cass Review from the UK, which has been used by critics to argue for more caution in pediatric gender care. It showed a side of Newsom that was trying to sound like a moderate—a move many believe is a precursor to a 2028 presidential run.
Dyslexia and the PlumpJack Days
It wasn't all political warfare. We actually got some biographical depth that most news clips skip. Newsom talked extensively about being diagnosed with dyslexia at age five. He described the struggle of graduating from Santa Clara University while barely being able to read the way his peers did.
He also touched on his business roots. Long before he was the "tyrant" of Sacramento (as some call him), he was a guy starting the PlumpJack Group in 1992. He grew a single wine shop into a multimillion-dollar empire of restaurants and hotels.
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Regardless of your politics, hearing a sitting governor talk about his "lifelong struggle" with a learning disability felt authentic. It’s the kind of stuff that only comes out when you have four hours to kill on a couch instead of 30 seconds on CNN.
Why This Matters for 2026 and Beyond
So, what was the point? Why did Gavin Newsom go on the Shawn Ryan Show?
Politics is about reaching people where they are. Newsom knows he has a "coastal elite" image problem. By sitting down with a Navy SEAL and talking about guns, God, and the Epstein list (yes, they talked about that too), he’s trying to break out of the echo chamber.
Ryan, for his part, took some heat from his own audience. Some felt he was too "obsequious" or soft on Newsom. They wanted him to go for the jugular. Instead, Ryan maintained that "divorce is not an option" for Americans and that we have to learn to talk to people we hate.
It was an experiment in civil discourse that left almost everyone slightly annoyed. And in today’s political climate, that might actually mean it was a success.
What You Can Do Next
If you want to understand the full context of the Shawn Ryan Gavin Newsom discussion, don't just watch the clips. Clips are designed to make you angry.
- Watch the full 4-hour episode: It's available on YouTube and Spotify. You'll see the nuances that the "outrage" tweets miss.
- Compare the stats: When Newsom talks about homicide rates or "weapons of war," look up the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) data yourself.
- Track the 28th Amendment: Keep an eye on Newsom's proposed amendment. It’s his primary vehicle for gun control, and it’s the direct counter-argument to the "I'm not anti-gun" statement he made on the show.
- Follow the "Cass Review": Since Newsom mentioned it, reading the executive summary of the UK's Cass Review will give you insight into why his stance on gender care for minors seems to be shifting.