Newsom Accuses Trump of Climate Abdication at UN Sidelines

California Governor Gavin Newsom met with world and business leaders in New York on Wednesday to advance climate action and clean energy, on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, saying President Donald Trump has abdicated his responsibilities on the issue.

Newsom said state and local governments are stepping in where the federal government has pulled back, accusing Trump of trying to "recreate the 19th century" by reopening coal plants, announcing new oil drilling plans including off California, and centering energy policy on fossil fuels that drive climate change.

"He's doubling down on stupid, and he's putting the American economy at risk," Newsom said in an interview, calling Trump the most destructive environmental president in American history.

In his public remarks, Newsom framed the transition away from fossil fuels as a contest for economic and technological power rather than simply an environmental question. "This is not about electric power. This is about economic power. It's about supply chains. It's about statecraft," he said, warning that Chinese President Xi Jinping is "cleaning our clock from an economic perspective."

Newsom also criticized federal moves to subsidize gas and to halt projects that had already cleared state permitting and partnership stages, saying such projects had been "vandalized." He said California intends to compete aggressively in the next major industry, describing the shift as a national security matter as well.

The White House pushed back through spokeswoman Taylor Rogers, who used Trump's derogatory nickname for the governor and accused him of complaining about what she called a climate change hoax.

Newsom, a Democrat seen as a possible 2028 presidential contender, has positioned himself against Trump's climate stance before, attending the 2025 U.N. climate talks in Belem, Brazil, which Trump skipped.

Trump has prioritized fossil fuels for electricity generation and began reversing U.S. energy policies on his first day back in office, after the Biden administration sought to expand clean energy. At last year's U.N. gathering, Trump called climate change "the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world." He has also slowed renewable energy development, particularly offshore wind, while China and other nations invest heavily in the sector. China leads the world in adding wind and solar capacity, though it also added substantial coal power last year.

Xi begins a state visit to Washington on Wednesday, with artificial intelligence expected to be among the topics in his talks with Trump as economic and technological competition between the two countries intensifies.