Overview
- At a Sunday book-tour event in Atlanta, Gavin Newsom told Mayor Andre Dickens he was "like you," called himself "a 960 SAT guy," and said he cannot read speeches because of dyslexia.
- The clip was first boosted by the conservative End Wokeness account on X and drew tens of millions of views, triggering criticism from figures including Sean Hannity, Nicki Minaj, Ted Cruz and Tim Scott who called the remarks racist or condescending.
- Newsom responded directly on X, invoking his "lifelong struggle with dyslexia" and denouncing what he called "fake" MAGA outrage in a profanity-laced reply to Hannity.
- Newsom’s communications director called the episode "MAGA-manufactured outrage" and noted the governor has publicly referenced his low SAT score and dyslexia for years, including in appearances with conservative audiences.
- Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who conducted the interview, urged people to consider the full exchange and described Newsom’s comments as a moment of vulnerability about his academic struggles during the memoir discussion.