Northern California Native Aaron Rodgers Publicly Criticizes Gov. Newsom Over His Handling Of The Pandemic
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers publicly slammed government leaders, including Governor Gavin Newsom for his handling of the pandemic.
Rodgers was being interviewed Tuesday when he called help from leaders during the pandemic "a joke."
In a segment on the YouTube channel "The Pat McAfee Show," Rodgers, a Chico native, said: "Don't eat out a restaurant unless you're wearing a mask and separate 'oh, here's a picture of the governor of California violating those rules. Oh, public schools are closed but I can send my kids to a private school in person. It's like, I mean, for us to count on the government to help us out is becoming a joke at this point."
Rogers was referring to photos that surfaced in November 2020 of Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom dining with friends at the opulent French Laundry restaurant while not wearing masks or social distancing. It was during the same time Newsom was telling state residents to spurn social gatherings and to stay home.
EXCLUSIVE: We've obtained photos of Governor Gavin Newsom at the Napa dinner party he's in hot water over. The photos call into question just how outdoors the dinner was. A witness who took photos tells us his group was so loud, the sliding doors had to be closed. 10pm on @FOXLA pic.twitter.com/gtOVEwa864
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) November 18, 2020
The Republican party's official Twitter account tweeted the video segment, with this statement:
"We appreciate @AaronRodgers12 taking a stand for his home and recognizing that leaders like himself need to support Californians since hypocritical politicians like @GavinNewsom have failed to do so."
The French Laundry Dinner has reached Wisconsin — Green Bay Packers QB criticizing @GavinNewsom ???????????????????????? https://t.co/IYdN7qcdWR
— Lara Korte (@lara_korte) January 13, 2021
This incident, combined with frustrations from Californians about the governor's restrictions over in-person schooling and non-essential business has fueled a growing recall effort. According to reports, over 1,000,000 million signatures supporting the recall petition have been gathered so far.
Rodgers is considered by many sportscasters to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time.