Chronicle columnist David Talbot offers a brief interview with Gavin Newsom in which Talbot cites “gay marriage” as an issue on which he admires Newsom’s pluck. (Although he can not cite a second instance because no one can. And gay pockets hold a lot of campaign donations, as Newsom has always been well aware of).

“And then there’s slick and corporate Newsom — the leader who sometimes seems more of a tech entrepreneur than a man of the people, with his talk of re-engineering democracy while taking bags full of campaign cash from Airbnb and private equity firms. Newsom has raised more money in his race for governor than any of his rivals, with a big boost from Airbnb, whose employees have kicked in more than $225,000 so far to his campaign. While progressive San Francisco officials have desperately tried to clamp reasonable limits on Airbnb, as the short-term rental behemoth threatens to turn the city into its tourist domain, Newsom has opposed all such regulatory efforts.”

This makes it pretty clear that Newsom is beholden to the wealthy. No surprise there!

Talbot, of course, fails to ask about prisons, the police, his staunch support for neoliberal policies (including park privatization), charter schools, how corporate marijuana legislation will unfold on the ground, the problems of extortionate rent and real estate prices, high fees at State universities and many other topics…..