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A cryptic X post from California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office remained under criticism Monday, with the acting U.S. attorney in California calling out the rhetoric as “reckless” on the heels of the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
The post, which read, “Kristi Noem is going to have a bad day today. You’re welcome, America,” prompted Bill Essayli to make a Secret Service threat assessment referral over the weekend.
“I was shocked when I saw that,” he said Monday on “Fox & Friends.”
“That’s the exact same rhetoric we saw leading up to the assassination of Charlie Kirk just a little over a week ago, and for the governor to do that and send that out was completely reckless, and we don’t know the intent, and we don’t know how that’s gonna be received by left-wing extremists, so I made the referral to the Secret Service out here in California.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom looks on during a bill signing event related to redrawing the state’s congressional maps on August 21, 2025 in Sacramento, California. Newsom’s press office faces backlash after an acting U.S. attorney called its Kristi Noem X post “reckless,” linking it to rhetoric that led up to Charlie Kirk’s assassination. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“They’re gonna do a full-threat assessment, and they’re going to see if there’s any danger to the secretary. They’re charged with keeping her protected.”
Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s prior request for comment.
However, the governor’s press office hit back against Essayli with another X post, claiming they had referred President Donald Trump for investigation over a 2020 tweet in which he made a similar reference to Vermont senator and then-Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders.
At the same time, a new California law unmasking most officers, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, garnered criticism from Essayli for allegedly opening the door to further harm while the threat level against law enforcement runs high.
“Our agents, our men and women who… signed up to protect our communities, don’t deserve this,” he said.
“Assaults against them are up over 1,000%… and the left continues to fuel this insanity, hysteria, that the federal government is somehow an illegitimate force, and it’s okay to oppose ICE.”
He continued, “What they do is they lay the gasoline and the matches out, and they get people spun up, and they hope that someone does what they want them to do, which is burn the place down because they can’t get their way, and we’re not putting up with it, and if you try that here, you’ll end up in handcuffs.”
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a press conference at the Wilshire Federal Building on Thursday, June 12 in Los Angeles. (Luke Johnson / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Essayli’s warning to would-be perpetrators comes amid relentless pushback against the Trump administration’s illegal immigration crackdown, which administration officials insist has largely targeted criminal aliens.
California’s new law in question, signed by Newsom on Saturday, follows outbursts from state and local officials who have accused federal immigration enforcement efforts of being a source of “disorder.”
The bill, which was presented to Newsom on Wednesday, makes it a misdemeanor crime for local, state or federal law enforcement to wear masks or personal disguises during their duties, unless an officer is undercover or performing a tactical operation that requires protective gear.
The bill would also impose a civil penalty against officers for “tortious conduct,” including false imprisonment or false arrest of an individual while wearing a facial covering.
Essayli said he has directed agencies to disregard the bill, arguing California has no jurisdiction over the federal government.
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Newsom argued that due process rights are being stripped away from “immigrants,” adding that agents should reveal their identities and that state officials have the right to push back against federal enforcement measures.
“Unmarked cars, people in masks, people quite literally disappearing. No due process, no rights — no rights in a democracy where we have rights, immigrants have rights,” Newsom said.
“We have the right to stand up and push back, and that’s what we’re doing here today. This is a disgrace. This is an outrage what we have allowed to happen in this country. … To ICE: unmask. What are you afraid of?”
Anti-ICE protests have erupted in major cities across the nation, including in Los Angeles, where some activists grew violent and were taken into custody.
Fox News’ Alexandra Koch, Sophia Compton and Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
