Newsom Now Loves the Free Speech He Tried to Censor

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is being called out for using AI-generated memes he attempted to restrict in the Golden State.

On Wednesday, the Democrat posted a “PSA from JD” taken from the VP’s appearance on Fox News earlier in the day, but the meme portrayed him as a minion and changed his voice. The governor also posted a similar one of House Speaker Mike Johnson.

PSA from JD. pic.twitter.com/fhnuX7leOL
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) October 1, 2025

Trump’s Minion Mike lies to the American people. pic.twitter.com/O66du5modt
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) October 1, 2025

Kyle Mann, the editor in chief of the Babylon Bee, which sued Newsom over his political censorship laws, pointed out the irony.

"Gavin should be thankful we at @TheBabylonBee sued the state of California and got the law he signed to stop people from parodying politicians using A.I. overturned," he wrote, sharing the governor's tweet.

In August, a federal district judge ruled the two laws, AB 2839 and AB 2655, are unconstitutional.

In two separate lawsuits, The Babylon Bee v. Bonta and Rumble v. Bonta, Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys represent satire website The Babylon Bee, California attorney and blogger Kelly Chang Rickert, and Rumble, operator of a large video-sharing platform that hosts a variety of content, including political commentary.
The two laws challenged in the lawsuits are AB 2839, which targets and punishes speakers for engaging in certain political commentary, including posting satirical memes and parodies of politicians, and AB 2655, which requires large online platforms to act as the government’s censor and remove certain political commentary from their sites. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California found both laws to be unconstitutional.
“Making fun of politicians and criticizing the government is a core First Amendment right. That includes using new technology to create parody campaign ads or satirical memes,” said ADF Senior Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse, who argued before the court. “The court was right to rein in California’s blatant censorship. We can’t trust the government to decide what is true in our online political debates.”
“Our job is hard enough when our jokes keep coming true, as if they were prophecies,” said The Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon. “But it becomes significantly more difficult when self-serving politicians abuse their power to try to control public discourse and clamp down on comedy. We’re pleased the court recognized the First Amendment secures our right to tell jokes, even ones the government doesn’t like.” (ADF)