Obama Tells Nervous Newsom: ‘Burn the Rulebook, We’re Democrats Now’

KEY POINTS

•Gavin Newsom called Barack Obama seeking caution before pushing California's Proposition 50 redistricting plan in 2025.
•Despite expecting a warning, Newsom was encouraged by Obama to proceed with the aggressive plan rewriting congressional maps.
•The measure passed with 65% support last November to counter GOP efforts in Texas, temporarily reshaping elections through 2030.

On a politically seismic day, California's Gov. Gavin Newsom dialed up Barack Obama expecting a polite 'maybe chill' on Prop 50, his aggressive redistricting plan. Instead, Obama said, 'Go for it,' flipping Newsom’s nerves into turbo mode. Newsom calls Prop 50 the 'Election Rigging Response Act,' which Californians approved by 65% last November, letting lawmakers redraw maps to flip five GOP districts blue. It's a fiery footnote in the delicate art of mapmaking—the very norm Obama once championed against—but now seen as essential to fight back against Texas Republicans and Trump trying to rig elections before a single vote hits the polls. Newsom admits it's a break from 'independent redistricting peace,' but hey, who needs kumbaya when you’ve got 2026, 2028, and 2030 to defend? It's partisan warfare sesame street style, with Obama's moral stamp turning a tradition-breaking move into a cause célèbre.