Gavin Newsom Confronts Sean Hannity on Blue States Subsidizing Red States

California Governor Gavin Newsom recently confronted Fox News host Sean Hannity on the relative economic contributions made to the United States by red states and blue states.

Newsom, who entered his current office in 2019 and has become a prominent national figure in Democratic politics since, sat for the interview with Hannity and touched on a number of subjects. This included his political rival Florida Governor Ron DeSantis‘s recent involvement in sending migrants from Texas to Sacramento, as well as a defense of President Joe Biden‘s track record as commander-in-chief. Despite evidence that he is not currently considering a run, many observers have deemed Newsom a viable Democratic option for president in 2024 instead of Biden.

In a newly released portion of the interview shared on Friday, Newsom also confronted Hannity on the economic discrepancies between Democrat-led states and Republican-led states, saying that the former make up a stronger portion of the U.S. economy, effectively “subsidizing” the latter. This exchange came after the Fox News host suggested that companies like Tesla were leaving California due to its higher corporate taxes.

“This is on its way to becoming the fourth-largest economy in the world. What are you arguing for? Mississippi’s economic policy?” Newsom asked in response to Hannity’s claim. “Literally, that’s what you’re arguing for. The great Sam Brownback’s Kansas policy? It was a debacle, no economic growth. Seventy-one percent of the GDP in America are [in] blue counties, progressive policies. Seventy-one percent of the country’s wealth. Seven of the top 10 dependent states are your states. We’re subsidizing your states, Sean, because of your policies.”

In a report from late 2020 in the wake of the presidential election, the Brookings Institution, a U.S.-based think tank, found that counties that went for Biden generated around 71 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). The numbers were similar in 2016, when all of the counties that went for Donald Trump generated just 36 percent of the economy, compared to the nearly two-thirds generated by the counties that went for Hillary Clinton.

Additionally, an April report from MoneyGeek also backed up Newsom’s other claim, finding that seven out of the 10 states most dependent on federal assistance were red states: West Virginia, Mississippi, Alaska, Kentucky, Montana, Arizona, and Alabama. Around 52 percent of U.S. states that provided more to the federal government than they received were blue states. Muddying the argument slightly, however, was the fact that the most dependent state, New Mexico, is considered a blue state.

Newsweek reached out to Newsom’s press office via email for comment.