California Gov. Gavin Newsom was on a mission to help President Biden at a private fundraiser in the heart of America for President Donald Trump.

Out on Independence Day weekend, Newsom told a group of about 50 Democrats gathered in the backyard of a mansion overlooking the foothills of Boise on Saturday, saying, “Why are we so passionately committed to Biden’s re-election? To make a strong case about what should be done.” ”

In a time when there were states like Idaho, If the number of registered Republicans outnumbers Democrats by more than 4 to 1, that is enactment of law Restricting abortion and gay rights and promoting other culturally conflicting pillars republican agenda, Newsom said the only person he could trust to turn the tide was Biden.

of 80 year old president Newsom said he spent his tenure actively fighting for Democratic priorities. LGBTQ+ Rights, gun control and clean energy, in the meantime Rebuild the American economy after COVID-19 and keep democracy alive.

“I’m really proud of this president and I hope you are too,” Mr. Newsom said to an audience delighted to have won one of the party’s rising stars.

Saturday’s riots in Idaho didn’t just revitalize Mr. Biden’s hitherto neglected base in conservative corners of the West. It helped build Newsom’s future.

Many of the Democrats who gathered to hear Newsom speak at another fundraising event in Idaho and Bend, Oregon earlier in the day said the 55-year-old liberal governor offered a glimpse into the future of a bolder party. He said he thought he would. , a more charismatic and younger potential heir to Biden’s legacy in the post-Trump years.

“He seems like a great presidential candidate,” said Russ Butchart, the Idaho Democratic Trustee.

Michelle Anderson, a Bend real estate broker and former Bay Area resident, said the country faces challenges even as she lashes out at Newsom’s “fairly influential” voice and Republicans’ erosion of progress in Democratic administrations. I commended him for his proactive approach to the most important issues. Recent history of this country.

“While we appreciate what Joe Biden has done so far, I think it’s also time for the next generation of leaders to step up,” Anderson said. “And I see Gavin Newsom as one of them.”

Newsom said he had no interest in the White House and said the cross-border trip was to promote the party and the president ahead of the 2024 election.

But Rob Stutzman, a Republican consultant in California, said his stumbling block to Mr. Biden has successfully tapped Mr. Newsom for other jobs. His public feud with the Republican Party has filled a “void” within the party, allowing him to use the MAGA division of the Republican Party (Mr. It sends the message that you are a Democrat who participates actively and fearlessly in the movement that helps. the way.

“He puts in an amount of time and effort that no one but the White House sees,” Stutzman said. “He’s acting like a waiting candidate.

“Maybe it will pay off for him someday.”

The visit to Idaho that marked the beginning of Newsom’s activities Second tour through the red states Over the past few months, Mr. Biden has devoted himself to building enthusiasm for Mr. Biden’s achievements and promoting the achievements of his party, while showing love and concern to beleaguered local Democrats and his political activism. It was dedicated to channeling the meager campaign funds from the Commission Campaign for Democracy.

Newsom reduced a check of $10,000 from the Idaho Democratic Party, the maximum amount allowed for event attendance. That’s just a fraction of the more than $3 million he has poured into Biden and Democrats in Republican-run states like Florida, Tennessee and Mississippi over the past three months. He will meet with Democrats in person in Montana this week during the annual Independence Day family vacation, before making a stop in Utah.

The turmoil in Republican-led states is an opportunity for Newsom to remind him how important local Democrats are in fighting back what he described as a Republican-led “retreat of rights.”

“If Trump returns as president, do you think he won’t ask for a third term?” “You think January 6th is the last time we see each other… give me a break.”

Newsom’s foray into national politics has evolved since last year, when he criticized the party for not being aggressive enough in the face of its victories at local, state and national levels, including on the Supreme Court. .

“I’m just trying to move from lamentation and criticism to action and accountability,” Newsom said in an interview with The Times in Boise. “No one wants to listen to critics. What do you do? And I had to answer the question, ‘What are you going to do? ‘”

“I’m trying to make something,” he said. “But I’m trying to complement the work that’s already been done.”

But Newsom also has to contend with the side effects of campaigning in red states like Idaho. One of the most displaced Californians According to data analyzed by the bipartisan California Institute of Public Policy. During Newsom’s tenure, California saw a surge in homelessness, worsening housing shortages and a home-price crisis, some of the pain points in a recent PPIC poll, with about 10 Californians Four of them are shown to be considering leaving the state.

Idaho Republican Party Chairman Dorothy Moon said in a statement: “California’s far-left governor came to Boise to raise money for the Idaho Democratic Party and to export a number of failed policies, including high housing costs. was,” he said. “People who do not want to live as serfs in Prince Gavin’s kingdom are fleeing California en masse. I am convinced that his visit to the normal United States violates any travel restrictions in California.” increase.”

California Republican Party Chairman Jessica Millan Patterson said the state’s struggles “should serve as a wake-up call to the nation.”

“It’s becoming increasingly clear that while Mr. Newsom is running a shadowy presidential campaign, he’s also trying to take his state’s failures straight to the White House,” Milan Patterson said in a statement. Stated. “You don’t want what Gavin Newsom sells.”

Newsom dismissed the criticism as tired of the Republican point and distracting from the cultural issues underlying his visit.

“I’m not going to speak at the stumps of California. I’ve never been to any of the red states I’ve been to,” he said, adding that his mandate was not a “Visit California” campaign. “This is not what it is. I’m talking about Democrats and our values, and I think we have a lot to brag about in that regard.”

Mike Madrid, Republican Political Consultant and Co-Founder of Anti-Trump Group lincoln project, He said Newsome’s brand appeals to Democrats across the country, including in battleground states, who want leaders “without shame and without guilt” to defend against Republicans.

While Democrats in past decades have focused on the economy and shunned the more divisive cultural issues of the time, Mr. Newsom’s focus on LGBTQ+ and transgender rights, gun control and environmental issues. appeals to college-educated, white-collar party members, Madrid said. His party, along with some Latino voters looking for political ground.

Madrid said it could be a winning strategy in a deeply divided America amid the culture wars. Voters want an advocate for cultural issues, and “Gavin Newsom is that advocate.”

For now, at least, Newsom ignores the president’s tributes and sticks to the script.

“I think we should be humble about it,” he said. “But that’s not why I’m here.”