Gavin Newsom Sipped Cabernet While Los Angeles Burned

The California governor attended a luxury wine-tasting during the recent riots.

As riots engulfed Los Angeles and mobs vandalized public buildings, incinerated vehicles, and assaulted law enforcement officers, California governor Gavin Newsom was enjoying a swanky wine-tasting party in Napa Valley.

The wine-tasting was held on the afternoon of June 7, 2025, at the Odette Estate Winery, which Newsom co-founded in 2011. Dubbed “Vineyard Vibes,” the event was a fundraiser for the PlumpJack Foundation, founded by Newsom’s sister, and featured “contemporary yet sophisticated” wines, live jazz music, and locally made pizza and smash burgers. “It’s the perfect kick-off to summer fun,” read promotional language. “The fete will take place on the Winery Crushpad, where we’ll gather for music, food, conversation, and delicious wine!”

A source who photographed Newsom at the event expressed shock that the governor was in attendance, given that riots had broken out in Los Angeles the day before. “I couldn’t believe it,” the source said. “He was just walking around like this was an everyday occurrence.” Newsom was at the wine party for at least 90 minutes, according to the source, who said that when the governor finally left, he appeared to retreat to the inner rooms of his winery.

The timeline is worth noting. The Los Angeles riots broke out on June 6, in response to the Trump administration’s illegal-alien deportation policies. As Newsom sampled wines in Napa Valley the next day, rioters in Los Angeles had already begun vandalizing public buildings, barricading streets, setting vehicles on fire, and throwing rocks, bottles, and cinder blocks at law enforcement officers. That evening, after the wine party had finished, President Trump authorized the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops to California, saying that they were needed to “address the lawlessness.”

A spokesman for the governor said that Newsom had “proudly attended” the event, which was intended to raise funds for UCSF Cancer Center, “in honor of his mother, who died of breast cancer.”

This isn’t the first time that Newsom, widely considered a leading contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, has sparked controversy with his penchant for the high life. In November 2020, during the Covid pandemic, Newsom gathered with political allies at the Michelin-starred French Laundry, even as he had instructed California residents to avoid getting together with family for the approaching Thanksgiving holiday. He would later apologize, saying, “I made a bad mistake . . . I need to preach and practice, not just preach and not practice.”

In this instance, it was wine, rather than food, that caught Newsom’s attention. But the principle is the same: Newsom sips Cabernet while his state burns.