Gavin Newsom's New Name For Donald Trump Is Sure To Get Under His Skin

It's safe to say there's no love lost between President Donald Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom. Though they've often traded barbs, both online and in real life, Newsom has a history of getting the upper hand on Trump, especially when it comes to scathing nicknames. While attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on January 20, Newsom responded to questions from reporters — and managed to poke at one of Trump's ongoing insecurities.

It's the "rule of Don," not the rule of law. Trump is unhinged — and dangerous.

World leaders: Stop whispering in private and caving to him in public. Stand strong. Stand united!

Wake up! pic.twitter.com/EBbZAFFcab

— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) January 20, 2026

"This is diplomacy with Donald Trump?" Newsom rhetorically responded when asked about Trump's attempts to negotiate with European powers regarding his lust to own Greenland. "He's a T-Rex, you mate with him or he devours you," Newsom continued, a sly jab at Trump's recurring fragility around his hand size. Considering that Trump had earlier tried to get under Newsom's skin during the forum, to no avail, the response from the California governor shows just who consistently has the better footing in the feud. 

But Newsom didn't just stop there. He also referred to the president as "a wrecking ball," and described Trump as "unmoored" and "unhinged." However, he also mentioned something that might turn Trump's stomach even more than a reminder of his small hands, and plays into a bigger woe for the president.

There's an ongoing theme within the mythos of Donald Trump, and it's what seems to be an obsession with being well-liked. This is most evidenced by Trump's overt focus on the size of the crowds attending his events. Considering just how preoccupied with each other Gavin Newsom and Trump are, it makes sense that the governor from California would know how to poke at the president. This was put on display when Newsom joked about how no one showed up to Trump's military parade in June of 2025, and Newsom brought the heat yet again in Davos.

Regarding how world leaders treat the president, Newsom told reporters in a video on X (formerly Twitter), "Everybody's talking behind his back, they're laughing at him." This might come as a surprise to the president as Newsom continued, "Meanwhile, they're sucking up to him," indicating that people holding global positions of power are behaving a bit like mean girls, playing nice to Trump's face and being duplicitous behind the scenes. As a man focused on his popularity the way Trump is, hearing that his friends might not even like him is sure to be a bit devastating. With Trump's own popularity declining after his first year back in office, hearing Newsom bring up both his hand size and crowd size sounds like a recipe for sending the president into yet another social media frenzy.