The Newsom-Trump dynamic sets up a test case for Democrats charting their future

“The reality is every good story needs a villain,” said Democratic Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, who now holds the seat in Congress that Bass did for a decade before heading to City Hall.

“Trump is incredibly adept at understanding that. Gavin Newsom is also really good at understanding that. The next four years, and this year, I think will be a dance of the storytellers and the story creators. Who’s the villain? Who’s the hero? That’s what political theater has turned into at this point, unfortunately.”