R&I ~ Løki
OAKLAND, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom said Friday he should not have attended a fancy dinner party honoring a top political adviser after facing immediate social media backlash — and just as the governor is trying to discourage households from gathering for the holidays.
The Democratic governor, First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and people from several other households gathered outside this month at The French Laundry to celebrate the 50th birthday of lobbyist Jason Kinney, a longtime friend. The dinner at one of the world’s most exclusive restaurants was first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
…The news came less than two hours after Newsom strongly discouraged residents from traveling for the holidays or bringing together multiple households for Thanksgiving.
Regardless of the governor’s assertion that the meal abided by coronavirus restrictions, he faced an immediate backlash on social media over his decision to partake in an event at an opulent, multiple Michelin-starred restaurant as businesses around the state reel from the pandemic and Californians chafe under social limitations. Some drew a connection to the governor sending his four children to private school classrooms while most of the state’s public school students continue to do remote learning, as POLITICO reported last month.
Andy D