Jake Tapper Thinks CA’s COVID Response Is Being Used As a Cudgel on Fishing Buddy Gavin Newsom

Remember when CNN thought it would be cool to move Jake Tapper's The Lead into a little podcast studio in his office? That experiment didn't work, but as we reported earlier, CNN is trying something new. For Tapper's recent interview with California governor and 2028 Democratic presidential candidate-to-be Gavin Newsom, CNN shot video of the two of them fly fishing together. (It was so authentic, it reminded us of Anderson Cooper standing waist-deep in floodwaters while his camera crew was just out of frame on dry land.) Dinner parties with Anthony Fauci, fishing with Newsom … it's all so professional.

Tapper made it back to CNN's studio and shared some of his chat with Newsom, including a bit where Newsom admitted that perhaps mistakes were made under his leadership during the COVID pandemic. Tapper says Newsom's opposition is using his mishandling of the pandemic as a "cudgel" against him.

Jake Tapper does an in-show promo for his fly-fishing 'interview' with Newsom.

He says Covid is being used as a "cudgel" to attack people, and that Gavin Newsom really "regrets" closing the schools at t the time.

"A lot of people made mistakes."

In case anyone was wondering… pic.twitter.com/dQwS1xpSRc
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) September 16, 2026

The post continues:

… what the purpose of the 'interview' really is.
Also -- any time you hear Tapper talking about the Covid era, remember that he's never acknowledged his dinner parties with Fauci, the man he was supposed to be tasked with objectively covering.
Tapper's Credibility: Zero Point Zero.

LOL!

This is the kind of stuff you’ll never see Jake Tapper do for a Republican politician.

He’s basically a spokesperson for Gavin Newsom!
— Obi_1_D_AllKnowing (@obiopiah) September 16, 2026

“Some people” made mistakes.🤦🏻‍♂️
Dude obviously doesn’t own a mirror.
— Plato’s_Cave _Shadows (@False_Shadows) September 16, 2026

It's just bizarre to watch him opine on this era while knowing what he was doing behind the scenes. It says everything about him and his journalisming
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) September 16, 2026

It wasn't just the schools that were closed in California. Parks, beaches, playgrounds were closed. Businesses closed due to Newsom's restrictive covid regulations. On and on. Newsom is a dictator. He would do the same thing if given the chance. Don't give him the chance.
— Bella (@Bella818LP) September 16, 2026

So wait. Gavin Newsom now apparently admits that he was wrong to needlessly close schools in the COVID Panic, which destroyed a generation of California kids and has left our entire education system in ruins, and Jake Tapper gives him a pass because of a “sigh” and because lots… pic.twitter.com/TCW3Moni13
— John Ziegler (@Zigmanfreud) September 16, 2026

The post continues:

… of people “made mistakes”?!!
Newsom was the first to shutdown his state (on a complete and obvious lie) which forced others to mimic HIS mistake! Lots of credible people (including me) KNEW at the time that this was a huge “mistake”!!
Recently, on CNN I expressed the fury that I still have, and always will have, over my daughters being forced to needlessly suffer because of the Fauci/Newsom political alliance during the COVID Panic. 😡

Tapper seems anxious to help Newsom get this "cudgel" out of the way of his presidential ambitions.

Locking public school kids out of their classrooms while your own kids continued in their private schools isn’t a mistake.
— GoldenState (@state69235) September 16, 2026

Listen to jake trying to normalize Newsom!! He is a joke just like CNN 🤡
— Amy Bong 🇺🇸 (@bongiovann48917) September 16, 2026

Tapper is a compulsive lying fraud. Another fake news Democrat shill. Defended Biden’s cognitive competence for 4 years , then cashed in by writing a book about cognitively compromised he was after the fact. The man has no shame or credibility. He’s an embarrassment
— edbeez 360 (@edbeez360) September 16, 2026

“…and a lot of people used Covid to flex into areas where they had zero authority to punish people with opposing views.”

There. I fixed it for you, @jaketapper
— Section360Row8 (@MarkHolland1959) September 16, 2026

Aside from that, how was the fishing? Catch anything? Or did Newsom take you to the French Laundry for dinner?

***

Editor's Note: The mainstream media continues to gaslight, spin, and lie about President Trump, his administration, and conservatives.

Help us continue to expose their left-wing bias by reading news you can trust. Join Twitchy VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.