Meme war heats up: Donald Trump takes a jab, Gavin Newsom claps back; internet can’t look away

Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom have escalated their political rivalry into a meme war, marked by AI-generated videos. Trump initiated the exchange by posting a video mocking Newsom, who retaliated with his own digitally altered clips. The feud, fueled by past disagreements, has transformed into a public spectacle of comedic, yet pointed, digital jabs.

US President Donald Trump and California governor Gavin Newsom have taken their political feud to a new battlefield: the meme war. Since Trump took office for the second time, he has engaged with Newsom in several wars of words over a range of issues. Recently, Trump called Newsom "incompetent" and once again dangled threats of sending the National Guard back to California. It spiralled into a volley of AI-generated, heavily edited videos that look more like a late-night comedy show than a political showdown.

On Wednesday night, Trump posted a video showing a man lazily tapping a punching bag and screaming — only this time, the man's face had been replaced with Newsom's, while the bag bore Trump's photo. In another clip, a man with his face replaced by Newsom's sported a "Trump 2028" cap and confessed, "I wasn't exaggerating when I said I received a Trump 2028 hat in the mail. These guys are not screwing around."

Not to be out-memed, Newsom fired back with his own digital counterpunches. In one video, a police officer with Newsom's face dialled over a fallen "Trump" — portrayed as a helpless elderly woman gasping, "I've fallen, and I can't get up!" Another clip went even further, showing Newsom cradling a wailing "baby Trump" before plopping him into a cage.

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