California Govin Newsom received widespread approval from President Joe Biden on Tuesday when White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki tweeted opposition to a recall effort.
Psaki tweeted that Biden Newsom had a clear opposition to an attempt to recall an hour after she was asked during an information session on Biden’s position on the recall campaign.
“In addition to committing to a series of issues with @GavinNewsom as part of the climate crisis to negotiate the pandemic, @POTUS has clearly opposed attempts to recall @GavinNewsom,” the tweet said.
Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Newsom, a Democrat, has been criticized by both Republicans and Democrats for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has devastated California’s economy and killed more than 44,000 people nationwide, according to NBC News counts.
California has the most coronavirus cases of any state, with more than 3.4 million confirmed infections.
Anne Dunsmore, campaign manager of Rescue California, one of the organizations supporting the recall effort, this week collected about 1.5 million signatures needed to enforce a special election.
Recall organizers have until mid-March to submit 1.5 million certified signatures. Experts said the campaign should submit a surplus of signatures to ensure it meets the threshold set by government officials.
Dunsmore said Biden’s entry into the reminder shows that Newsom takes the threat seriously.
“They call in the guns,” she said. “It says a lot. It means play on.”
Newsom and the Biden government remained close allies. Newsom enthusiastically supported California Sen. Kamala Harris as Biden’s choice for vice president. Prior to that, Newsom and Harris worked closely together when Harris was San Francisco’s district attorney during Newsom’s tenure as mayor.
Last week, the Biden government announced that the federal government will open its first vaccination sites in California as part of the push to promote vaccinations. The sites will be in Oakland and Los Angeles, close to communities hit hard by the pandemic.
“From the beginning, [Newsom] tried to make it political, “Dunsmore said of the recall.” These are practical problems that people experience. This is not about Biden versus Trump. ‘
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Recall organizers raised about $ 3.4 million, Dunsmore said. Although the effort began as a conservative initiative, more Democrats and independents are participating in the campaign. Dunsmore says more than 20 percent of the collected signatures come from people without party parties, and ten percent are Democrats.
The California Institute of Public Policy found in a poll released last week that 54 percent of Californians approve of Newsom’s performance, up from 65 percent in May.
Former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, a Republican, was one of Newsom’s most outspoken critics. Faulconer announced his intention to serve against Newsom in a by-election last week. He said that if the recall attempt failed, he would take action against Newsom next year when he is eligible for re-election.