SACRAMENTO, Calif. — In a notable move, California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is set to stand alongside Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and several GOP governors from various states by ordering U.S. flags to be flown at full mast on Inauguration Day.
Izzy Gardon, a spokesperson for Newsom, confirmed on Wednesday that the governor will give a temporary directive for flags to be raised at the California state Capitol in Sacramento for the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump. Currently, flags at the U.S. Capitol and in statehouses nationwide are at half-staff to honor the recently deceased former President Jimmy Carter.
Despite having a contentious relationship with Trump in the past, Newsom is likely to require federal resources as California continues to recover from severe wildfires that have tragically resulted in the loss of over two dozen lives.
Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with flags being at half-staff during his inauguration, stating on his social media platform, “Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it.”
In the past week, several Republican governors, including Idaho’s Brad Little, North Dakota’s Kelly Armstrong, Florida’s Ron DeSantis, Alabama’s Kay Ivey, Tennessee’s Bill Lee, and Iowa’s Kim Reynolds, have announced their plans to lower U.S. flags again on January 21 in tribute to Carter. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has also made a similar declaration recently.