As part of his ongoing charm offensive, Democrat presidential hopeful Gavin Newsom visited Atlanta, Georgia, over the weekend. His task was apparently to present himself to the crowd as an average Joe. Too bad he ended up sounding like Steve Martin in “The Jerk,” the dumb white guy who said, “I was born a poor black child…”

Sure, Gavin.

Seeking to “relate” to the crowd, the California governor teamed up with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens to address a crowd of Democrat voters that included a significant number of blacks. Newsom, clearly attempting to downplay his elitism, said:

I’m not trying to impress you, I’m just trying to impress upon you, I’m like you. I’m no better than you. You know? I’m a 960 SAT guy. … I cannot — you’ve never seen me read a speech. Because I cannot read a speech.

What made Newsom’s comments even more tone-deaf was the supposed reason for his being in Atlanta: he was on a book tour for his new tome, Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery. He can’t read a speech, but he can write a book?

The clip has generated significant backlash on social media. “His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can’t read,” rap artist Nicki Minaj posted on X. “This means my first read on him was correct. He’s been handed so many things & put in high positions he never earned or deserved.” She added, “He’s not just TELLING them that they’re all probably stupid & probably can’t read, he’s LITERALLY SLOW-ING-DOWN-HIS-SPEECH to make them understand the words that are coming out of his mouth!!!! As if they’re children!!!! That means he REALLY BELIEVES they’re slow. He’s not just saying it — he didn’t misspeak!!!! He BELIEVES it!!!!”

South Carolina Senator Tim Scott weighed in, “Black Americans aren’t your low bar. We’ve built empires, created movements, outworked, outhustled and outsmarted people like you. Stop using your mediocre academics as a way to patronize communities. It’s ridiculous!”

Even a radical leftist like Nina Turner wrote, “Governor Gavin Newsom went to Atlanta and told a crowd that he is ‘just like’ them, he had a 960 SAT, that he can’t read speeches. How insulting. Working class people believe politicians are out of touch because they don’t worry about the cost or rent or medical bills.”

Aiming for damage control, Newsom hit back at Fox News host Sean Hannity, who pointed out how demeaning his comments were to black Americans. Playing the victim, Newsom posted, “You didn’t give a s*** about the President of the United States of America posting an ape video of President Obama or calling African nations s***holes — but you’re going to call me racist for talking about my lifelong struggle with dyslexia? Spare me your fake f***ing outrage, Sean.”

Well, okay then.

The trouble for Newsom is that he is not of the working class. He’s doing what so many politicians before him have done: he’s acting like he understands and cares. Recall, this was the guy who, after locking down his state during the pandemic, thought nothing of going out to eat at the ritzy French Laundry, breaking his own rules. He’s an elitist who is disingenuously playing at being an everyman.

And Californians are suffering from his leadership and policies, with the Golden State having the highest cost of living of all 50 states. It’s why so many residents have fled the state for red states like Georgia.

All he offers is spin, projecting a narrative that is anything but real. His opposition to the SAVE Act is a classic example of this disingenuous narrative-bending, as he asserts that needing to prove one’s citizenship in order to register to vote would be difficult, even for him, claiming that he lost his birth certificate when he was seven. This line of argument belittles voters and shows a prejudiced disdain for the abilities of Americans writ large, let alone their favored “poor” minority constituencies, and especially blacks.

Newsom’s not really interested in the plight of working-class Americans, as evidenced by his failed leadership of California. However, like a Hollywood actor, Newsom is aiming to play the role of a concerned leader well enough to dupe enough Americans into voting him into the White House.

Thus far, he’s off to a rocky start.