Fresh off of visiting South Carolina in what was undoubtedly a preview of a possible 2028 presidential run, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has acted stupidly (once again) after wading into the debate over a decision a California bishop made that centers around ICE-related activity in the Golden State in recent weeks.
Before we get to Newsom’s ill-advised comments, let’s first talk about the story of the bishop’s announcement. On Tuesday, Bishop Alberto Rojas of the Diocese of San Bernardino addressed a letter to parishioners excusing them from attending Sunday Mass for the foreseeable future over fears of an ICE sweep in the area.
“All members of the faithful in the Diocese of San Bernardino who, due to genuine fear of immigration enforcement actions, are unable to attend Sunday Mass or Masses on holy days of obligation are dispensed from this obligation, as provided for in Canon 1247, until such time as this decree is revoked or amended,” he wrote.
SEE ALSO: Hilarity Ensues After Desperate Gavin Newsom Challenges JD Vance to a Debate
In late June correspondence with church members, Rojas accused ICE of “seizing brothers and sisters indiscriminately,” some of whom he claimed were parishioners who were taken into custody on parish property:
🙏 @BishopRojas_ Message to the Faithful Amid Immigration Raids pic.twitter.com/1luZ6nx20d
— Diocese of San Bernardino (@sbdiocese) June 24, 2025
This is an allegation DHS has strongly disputed:
“The accusation that ICE entered a church to make an arrest are FALSE. ICE conducted a traffic stop on an illegal alien on June 20 in the general proximity of Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Montclair, California,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Newsweek.
“The illegal alien chose to pull into the church parking lot. Officers then safely made the arrest. There were no officers near Saint Adelaide Church, Montclair, California.”
It’s unclear if there was a more recent alleged incident (beyond the supposed June ones) involving ICE arrests that prompted Rojas to write the Tuesday letter.
Back to Newsom, he would have been better off sitting this one out, as his reaction prompted many to share inconvenient reminders of his past dictatorial actions during the COVID pandemic:
Freedom of religion? Not in Donald Trump’s America.
People now have to choose between their faith and their freedom. https://t.co/I3hN3RdX9A
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) July 9, 2025
Really, really bad idea, as a lot of folks – especially those who reside in California – remember what “freedom” looked like there in 2020 and 2021 under Newsom’s “leadership”:
You arrested people trying to pastor, pray and study the Bible together recently. Sit down. https://t.co/uigATw5zvt
— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@HarmeetKDhillon) July 9, 2025
How many churches did you lock down during Covid while you dined at The French Laundry?
— Michael Oxford – AKA The Santa Cruz Mountain Goat (@SCMountainGoat) July 9, 2025
This you? https://t.co/t4YDBKSxxs pic.twitter.com/SPQAjD7ovd
— Anthony (@AnthonyCabassa_) July 9, 2025
Oh. https://t.co/FBtQArs9K1 pic.twitter.com/TTENBvl7TA
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) July 9, 2025
Gavin Newsom wouldn’t know the meaning of the word “freedom” even if it slapped him upside the forehead. And as far as the word “faith,” well, I’ll leave that up to others to ponder.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump, illegal immigration into our great country has virtually stopped. Despite the radical left’s lies, new legislation wasn’t needed to secure our border, just a new president.
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