Karoline Leavitt Gets A Brutal New Nickname From Gavin Newsom And The Internet Is In Awe

As the very public feud between California Governor Gavin Newsom and President Donald Trump rages on, it seems Newsom is taking a page out of Trump's playbook. Specifically, the page about crafting childish yet oddly effective insulting nicknames for political opponents. Recently, Newsom's office took a swing at White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt with a brutal new moniker that has made a strong impression on social media.

During a press conference on August 12, 2025, Leavitt addressed the ongoing legal battle between Trump and UCLA over $584 million in funds that the government has frozen for the university. Newsom promised to sue the administration, and Leavitt called the governor out, saying she'd send evidence of UCLA not protecting students' rights that should be covered under the First Amendment. The following day, Newsom's press office posted on X, "24 hours later and KaroLYING Leavitt still hasn't sent the 'evidence' she promised to send. These people are LIARS!"

Newsom has recently been giving Trump a taste of his own medicine on social media. His press office has been posting messages on X often written in all caps, and using the same sort of chaotic stream-of-consciousness prose that Trump is infamous for in his whiny Truth Social meltdowns and rants. Newsom's office reiterated the nickname later the same day in another post on X, this time leaving off the "g" and going for a more succinct "KaroLYIN LEAVITT." The mocking parody tone of Newsom's posts have divided some political commentators, but one this is for sure: "Karo-lyin Leavitt" was a real hit for the governor's press team.

Throughout his political career, Gavin Newsom has had no shortage of controversial moments — although perhaps the list pails in comparison to Donald Trump's deluge of scandals that includes countless lawsuits and convictions on 34 felony counts. However, the governor's recent decision to combat Trump by mocking him on social media has definitely left many commentators and internet trolls surprised (and at least a little impressed). Special praise, in fact, has gone to the nickname Newsom's team crafted for Karoline Leavitt.

"Karolyin leavitt is a banger i'm sorry," one X user wrote, responding to one of the many mocking posts written by Newsom' press office. Another X user said, "KaroLYIN needs to be a thing because that fits her so well." Looking toward the future, an X user predicted that the nickname for Leavitt might have some staying power — no doubt creating a headache for Leavitt — posting, "Give a raise to whoever came up with 'Karolyin' that name will stick forever."

Other commentators shared praise from Newsom's press office and the governor's tactics for dealing with Trump in the modern political arena. "Gavin Newsom trolling Trump is epic," one X commentator wrote. "Newsom is not backing down or cowering from Trump." As a body languge expert told us in January, it looks like Newsom has no intention of backing down. And Newsom's efforts to mock the president might hurt more than people expect. Since Newsom already showed the world that Trump's insults are getting stale and boring, the most painful and infuriating thing for Trump in this war of words might be just how much traction Newsom's brutal nickname for Leavitt is getting online.