It’s shaking hands and kissing babies season, and for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, that has made him quite the public-facing busy boy. Though he is term-limited from running for a third term, he is eyeing a potential presidential run in 2028 and, in the meantime, is crossing some T’s and signing some dotted lines.
On Saturday, Newsom posted a video to X of himself touring the set of HBO Max’s popular medical drama “The Pitt,” alongside lead actor Noah Wyle, to promote a new tax credit aimed at keeping a struggling film industry inside the Golden State.
“California is THE entertainment capital of the world—and we aren’t letting that go,” Newsom said in the post.
Keeping film and TV production in Hollywood has been an ongoing crisis in Southern California as competing states (and countries) have pulled business outside of the film capital.
But while Newsom reckons with that, he has also turned toward signing a bill that would help bolster California’s defense from unauthorized military deployments.
“At a time when the Trump administration is increasingly treating states as targets rather than partners, Senate Bill 1354 by Senator Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera) makes clear that California will not surrender its constitutional role, its values, or the rights of the nearly 40 million people who call this state home,” Newsom’s office wrote in a press release, which was also released on Saturday.
The bill comes in response to President Donald Trump activating the National Guard and deploying Marines into Los Angeles during June 2025 to counter protests against federal immigration raids. However, while the Bill sounds great on paper, the governor’s own press release notes that it doesn’t protect California from Title 10 deployments, which is what Trump evoked to carry out the cause in the first place.
“While this law does not apply to federal active-duty personnel operating under federal Title 10 authority, with the Governor’s signature of this bill, it closes a legal loophole where other states could have deployed their military under Title 32—even at the President’s suggestion,” Newson’s office added.
On a lighter note, Newsom also joined forces with former late-night host and car enthusiast Jay Leno to sign a bill that will give a smog test exemption to certain classic cars.
“California can protect clean air while also recognizing the historic and cultural value of collector vehicles,” state Sen. Dave Cortese, who co-authored the bill, said in a press release.
Newsom’s team also wrote that these collector vehicles contribute a miniscule amount of emissions compared with other vehicles in the state.
Another recent bill signed by the governor seeks to honor Los Angeles’ lowrider culture. The bill, written by state Assemblymember Mark González, allows the vehicles their own specialty license plates. The decked-out vehicles have long been a staple within Southern California’s communities.
“Lowriding is more than a car; it is cultura, it is art, it’s family, and it is a powerful expression of Chicano and Latino pride,” González said in the press release. “For generations, our communities have used lowriders to tell our stories, celebrate our heritage, and create something beautiful out of the streets we call home.”
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