California Governor Gavin Newsom had a hilariously petty way to "welcome" Vice President JD Vance to California—once again using a viral rumor about Vance's love for, ahem, couches to comedic effect.
Vance visited Camp Pendleton over the weekend for the 250th anniversary of the United States Marine Corps and Newsom took the opportunity to mock Vance by hinting at the now-infamous—though untrue—rumor that Vance wrote about having sex with a couch in his memoir, Hillbilly Elegy.
Newsom—who has been trolling the Trump administration for weeks via his personal account as well as the account for his official press office—shared a video of a couch with the words "JD WAS HERE" spray-painted on it.
Newsom captioned the video:
"JD — WELCOME TO CALIFORNIA, WE MADE SURE YOU FEEL RIGHT AT HOME."
You can see Newsom's post and an image of the couch's message below.
@GavinNewsom/X
It was shady as hell—and people loved it.
Newsom also targeted Vance and his love of couches earlier this month with an AI-generated video to troll him over the rising costs of goods due to President Donald Trump's retaliatory tariffs.
Newsom's video came after President Donald Trump announced new tariffs: 10% on softwood timber and lumber, and 25% on “certain upholstered wooden products,” that took effect October 14. The move follows Trump’s announcement in September of additional tariffs on kitchen cabinets, vanities, and other upholstered products, which took effect October 1.
That prompted Newsom to share a video featuring a viral meme of Vance with a round face and long, curly hair, mockingly presenting “A History of Couches.”
In it, "Vance" discusses the history and "elegance" of the Chesterfield style of leather sofa before hinting at the viral rumor, saying that "the Chesterfield isn't just furniture, it's an experience—and some of us know that a little too well."
Well played, Gov. Newsom. Well played.