White House slams California governor for wine tasting during riots

Tension is escalating between the Trump administration and the governor of California after Gavin Newsom was seen attending a charity wine event while LA riots raged over immigration this month.

On 6 June crowds of people took to the streets to protest against raids carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The anti-immigration crackdown team has been ramping up its efforts, as noted by the drinks world when ICE detained Oregon winemaker Moises Sotelo-Casas, a Mexican national who was in the process of applying for US citizenship, earlier this month.

It isn’t the first time that LA riots have broken out over ICE raids. In February 2025, shortly after Trump’s re-election, there were widespread protests against mass deportations after the Los Angeles City Council had declared the location a city of “sanctuary”.

In response to this month’s riots, Trump deployed 4,000 members of the National Guard and an additional 700 Marines to the city, which local officials called an “unnecessary provocation”. Among those criticising Trump’s response was California governor Gavin Newsom.

“We will not let this authoritarian use of military soldiers against citizens go unchecked,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Donald Trump is not a king and not above the law.”

Wine tasting party

Following Newsom’s outspoken criticism of Trump’s actions, fellow politicians and Right-leaning press directed their rhetoric towards the fact that Newsom had attended a wine event during the LA riots. Headlines such as ‘Gavin Newsom sipped Cabernet while Los Angeles burned’ (City Journal) began to emerge, painting a picture of the governor as enjoying “a swanky wine tasting party” while the city suffered.

The event in question was ‘Vineyard Vibes’, a fundraiser held on 7 June at Napa Valley’s Odette Estate Winery, which Newsom co-founded in 2011. According to an unnamed City Journal source Newsom was at the event “for at least 90 minutes”, after which time he “appeared to retreat to the inner rooms of the winery”.

Following the headlines, the Deputy Press Secretary for the White House publicly hit out at the California governor.

“Gavin Newsom doesn’t care about protecting the people of LA or defending federal law enforcement—he cares about attention and political posturing,” Abigail Jackson told the Daily Beast.

“If Gavin Newsom had any self-awareness, he’d be thanking President Trump for stepping in to defend federal law enforcement before LA burned to the ground.”

Newsom’s team responds

In a separate statement, also made to the Daily Beast, Izzy Gordan, press representative for the California governor, dismissed Jackson’s “absurd claims” and appeared to highlight the double standards at play by pointing out where President Trump was at the time of the LA riots.

“Abigail’s joke of a boss [Trump] was golfing,” she wrote. “Let’s get the facts straight: this was a cancer research fundraiser — not a ‘wine party,’” she added.

“While Donald Trump was golfing in Bedminster the same day, attending a UFC fight, and his White House senior team was literally posting about shopping for popcorn, the Governor proudly attended an annual fundraiser benefiting the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, in honour of his mother, who died of breast cancer at age 55.”

Odette Estate

Newsom, who is thought to be a leading contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, bought the 45-acre Odette Estate Winery in the Stag’s Leap district of Napa Valley in 2012. Part of the PlumpJack group, Odette’s sister wineries include PlumpJack, Cade Estate and CADE 13th Vineyard. The name Odette refers to the Shakesperean character which also featured in Tchaikovsky’s ballet Swan Lake.

The price of Odette’s wines – largely single-varietal Cabernets and Chardonnays – start from around US$194 a bottle. The estate is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certified, meaning that the property has achieved a high standard of sustainable design and operation, including actioning best practices in energy and water conservation. There is one step above Gold; Platinum.

In July 2023, db reported the appointment of Odette’s head winemaker Andrew Haugan. “We are confident that Andrew will uphold and enhance the winery’s standard for excellence and environmental responsibility, which has been Odette’s guiding philosophy since the Estate’s 2012 debut,” said John Conover, partner and general manager of Odette Estate Winery and the PlumpJack collection at the time.

White House slams California governor for wine tasting during riots

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