The Red Beneath the Rose: Why Gavin Newsom's Policies Reflect Marxism, Not Progressivism

The Red Beneath the Rose: Why Gavin Newsom's Policies Reflect Marxism, Not Progressivism

Author’s Note:

This piece is written as an opinion editorial and reflects my personal viewpoint based on publicly available information, observed policy outcomes, and ideological analysis. It is not my typical style of writing, as I prefer to focus on uplifting, constructive, and solution-oriented topics. However, I felt compelled to speak plainly and directly on this issue, given the magnitude of what I believe is at stake for California and for the nation. I understand that not everyone will agree with my conclusions, and I welcome thoughtful, respectful dialogue from those with differing perspectives.

Introduction

When we think of American leadership, we often imagine elected officials guided by the Constitution, committed to liberty, equality, and justice. However, in California, the state that once symbolized the American Dream, a different vision has taken root—one that many believe is fundamentally un-American. Governor Gavin Newsom, who presents himself as a forward-thinking progressive, is—when one examines his policies through the lens of political philosophy—far more aligned with Marxist and Communist ideologies than with democratic principles.

This is not an exaggeration or a partisan insult. It is a critical observation grounded in the Governor’s own record: centralized economic planning, suppression of individual liberties, redistribution disguised as “equity,” and open hostility toward traditional values like private property, self-reliance, and freedom of speech.

Let’s be clear about the terms. A Communist seeks to abolish private ownership of property, promote collective ownership of resources, and institute central planning where the state controls all aspects of life. A Marxist, following the philosophy of Karl Marx, views society as a perpetual class struggle, where the goal is to dismantle capitalism, redistribute wealth, and transfer power from the bourgeoisie to the proletariat through revolutionary or systemic means.

Now look at California under Newsom’s leadership: homelessness has exploded. Criminals are given more rights than victims. Businesses flee in droves. School curricula are infused with radical ideology. Illegal immigrants are given benefits while American citizens struggle to afford gas, food, and housing.

This is not progress—it’s regression into an authoritarian model that punishes success, erodes law and order, and stifles dissent. It may wear a fashionable suit and smile on camera, but beneath the polished exterior lies the blueprint of Marxist thought.

This article presents 15 specific policies or actions that demonstrate Newsom’s radical alignment—not with the Constitution or free-market democracy—but with the ideological pillars of communism and Marxism. From housing and crime to education and economics, the evidence is both damning and undeniable.

This is not an attack on Democrats. Many Democrats believe in capitalism, civil liberties, and national pride. But Gavin Newsom does not belong in that camp. This is not merely liberalism or even socialism—it is something far more dangerous: a quiet, methodical erosion of American values in favor of state control, class warfare, and systemic dependence.

If you believe in freedom, merit, responsibility, and the American Dream, then what follows will alarm you. Because it isn’t speculation—it’s a pattern. A pattern of policies that, taken together, form a chilling reality.

California is no longer the land of opportunity. Under Gavin Newsom, it’s becoming the testing ground for a new American Marxism. And unless the rest of the country wakes up, what’s happening there may become the model for the nation.

15 Policies That Reveal Marxist Influence

1. Universal Healthcare for Illegal Immigrants

Newsom signed legislation granting free healthcare to undocumented immigrants, regardless of age. While humanitarian on the surface, this blurs the line between citizen and non-citizen and forces taxpayers to fund the care of those who entered illegally—undermining the idea of national sovereignty and promoting collectivism over individual responsibility.

2. Guaranteed Income Programs

California has launched pilot guaranteed income programs in various cities, with state encouragement. These give money to people regardless of work, echoing Marx’s call for the abolition of wages and promoting a state-controlled redistribution of wealth.

3. Rent Control and Housing Mandates

Newsom has championed statewide rent control, freezing private landlords' ability to charge market rates. This is a direct assault on private property rights—a foundational principle in communism. Furthermore, he mandates housing construction quotas on cities, regardless of local governance.

4. Decriminalization of Crime

Through Prop 47 and “zero bail” policies, many violent or repeat offenders are released back onto the streets. Newsom has defended such policies, even when crime skyrockets, placing collective leniency over individual justice. This aligns with Marxist views of the justice system as inherently oppressive.

5. Anti-Police, Pro-Criminal Reforms

California law enforcement has been defunded, demoralized, and demonized, all while Newsom props up soft-on-crime DAs like George Gascón. Marxism seeks to dismantle institutions of “state violence”—police being chief among them.

6. Forced Business Shutdowns During COVID

Newsom shut down small businesses during the pandemic while allowing major corporations like Target and Amazon to operate. Central planning picked winners and losers, crushing individual entrepreneurs in favor of state-dependent giants.

7. Vaccine Mandates and Coercive Health Policies

Mandating vaccinations for work and school attendance with no room for dissent reveals a collectivist mindset that sacrifices individual choice for state-mandated conformity—common in communist regimes.

8. Education Indoctrination

Under Newsom, Critical Race Theory, gender ideology, and anti-American sentiment have been infused into the school system. Marxist ideology thrives in education by shaping the youth into believing the system is unjust and must be dismantled.

9. Wealth Redistribution via Taxation

California has the highest income tax in the nation, punishing those who are successful and transferring wealth through social programs. Newsom continually pushes new wealth taxes, including proposals to tax people even after they leave California—a level of economic control unimaginable in a free society.

10. Anti-Energy, Anti-Private Enterprise Policies

By banning gas-powered vehicles by 2035 and pushing green mandates, Newsom is dismantling market-driven energy and replacing it with government-dependent alternatives. This weakens economic independence and empowers bureaucrats.

11. Sanctuary State Policies

California provides legal cover for illegal immigrants, including shielding them from ICE, offering legal aid, and allowing non-citizens to serve on government boards. These policies weaken national identity and erode the concept of citizenship—another step toward Marxist internationalism.

12. Gender Transition Support for Minors

Newsom has signed laws protecting minors undergoing gender transition, even without parental consent. This state-over-parent control model echoes communist doctrine, where the state, not the family, defines a child’s path.

13. Censorship and Suppression of Dissent

California passed a law allowing the revocation of doctors’ licenses if they spread "COVID misinformation," a vague term often used to silence opposing views. This is a modern version of Marxist thought control, criminalizing dissent in the name of collective truth.

14. Criminalizing Free Speech in Education

Newsom signed laws allowing discipline or termination of teachers who don’t comply with ideological mandates. Teachers who challenge leftist orthodoxy risk their jobs, just as in totalitarian regimes where dissent is a punishable offense.

15. Weaponizing State Power Against Political Rivals

Newsom threatened pro-life states with boycotts, led efforts to sue red states over social policy, and openly brags about using California’s power to push national change. This isn’t governance—it’s ideological warfare.

Conclusion

Gavin Newsom may not wear a red star on his lapel or quote Karl Marx at press conferences, but his policies, philosophies, and tactics point unmistakably toward a governing style rooted in authoritarian collectivism. His vision for California—and potentially the nation—runs counter to the bedrock principles of the American republic.

Communism is not just an economic system—it’s a worldview. It sees individuals as cogs in a machine, property as theft, tradition as oppression, and dissent as dangerous. Marxism, its ideological core, teaches that society must be dismantled, rebuilt from revolution, and controlled from above by an enlightened class.

Is this not exactly what Newsom’s California looks like?

He erodes the family unit by placing the state between parents and children.
He redistributes wealth through punishing taxes and unearned benefits.
He silences those who speak against him, whether doctors, teachers, or everyday citizens.
He protects criminals and punishes law-abiding residents.
He elevates ideology above liberty, and loyalty to the state above loyalty to country.

None of this is an accident. It’s by design.

California, under Gavin Newsom, has become a state where American principles are mocked, where hard work is punished, where lawlessness thrives, and where free speech is on life support. The land of gold has been traded for a land of red—not the patriotic kind, but the authoritarian kind.

This is not a Democrat we’re dealing with. This is not even a socialist. This is a man governing with the ideological tools of Marxism and communism, masked in modern language, cloaked in progressive branding, and sold to the public as compassion.

But tyranny in the name of equity is still tyranny.

America must take heed. What happens in California rarely stays in California. If Gavin Newsom’s radical blueprint goes national—through legislation, precedent, or his own political ambition—the rest of the country may find itself living under the shadow of a smiling dictator with slick hair and iron fists hidden behind velvet gloves.

The time to speak is now. The time to resist is now.
Because freedom, once surrendered, is rarely ever restored.