By Douglas V. Gibbs
I am one of those who fled California. Like my parents, who fled a few years before me, we couldn’t afford to enter our retirement years in what used to be The Golden State. We aren’t alone.
Gavin Newsom took office in January 2019, and while California was already pushing people and businesses away prior to his reign, since Newsom has taken office the outflow of both residents and businesses increased substantially.
- The total estimated net migration loss during 2020-2025 is 931,000 people (roughly a million people have fled California under Gavin Newsom’s time as Governor of the State).
- Hundreds of companies moved their headquarters out of California between 2020 and 2025, as well.
- The departures have outpaced people and companies moving in during these years, the former resulting in a loss of representation in the House of Representatives after the last census, despite the fact that illegal aliens were being counted for apportionment during that time.
- The primary target states of the fleeing population from California have been Texas, Arizona, Nevada, and Florida – primarily driven by affordability and taxes.
- The numbers reflect a broader trend of economic and demographic shifts larger driven by California’s regulatory environment, tax structure and cost of living.
Bed Bath & Beyond filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023 and shuttering all of its brick-and-mortar locations. The company originally opened in 1971 in Springfield, New Jersey. By 1985 the company expanded into California, believing that westward growth into California was in its best interest. By 1999 the company hit $1 billion in sales, reflecting the success of the expansion, including in California. In February 2022, California held the most Bed Bath & Beyond stores of any state, with 87 active locations.
During Gavin Newsom’s governorship the retailer began slashing locations across California, and the company filed for bankruptcy in 2023. While COVID-19, Bed Bath & Beyond’s slow embrace of online retail strategies, and a shift away from the brands that customers trusted were indeed factors regarding BBB’s downfall, the company’s new leadership also cited as they work to open new stores they will be avoiding California due to high taxes, steep wages, heavy regulations, and the overall cost of doing business – the exact reasons companies have been fleeing California in droves during the Newsom governorship.
Governor Gavin Newsom responded with a biting remark implying Bed Bath & Beyond no longer holds relevance.
The Brand is being reintroduced as Bed Bath & Beyond Home, and opened its first new store in Nashville, Tennessee on August 8, 2025. The company plans four more Nashville area stores, with a broader opening strategy for 2026 already underway. The company then plans to convert existing Kirkland Home stores (Kirkland is a new partner with Beyond, Inc.) including six in the Greater Nashville area, followed by up to 75 conversions around the country by 2026 – not including any locations in California.
Rather than try to attract business to California, Newsom would rather snipe at the company, sending a message to other companies that California and their governor are hostile to businesses at a time when Newsom should be acting in a manner that would attract companies into the state.
Gavin Newsom is not only verbally abusive to the business sector, but also against members of the GOP, stating he plans to “punch Republicans in the mouth.”
Then, allegedly in response to Texas reducing Democratic Party gerrymandering in their state which would in turn benefit the Republicans with five additional seats in Congress, put into action increased gerrymandering plans in California to chase out already anemic Republican representation by the State of California in the House of Representatives. Gavin Newsom has already signed the redistricting plan in California that will attempt to further gerrymandering in one of the states that is already gerrymandered to the hilt in favor of the Democrats – sending a stronger message to Republican California residents to flee the state. The new law originally would violate California’s State Constitution which calls for an independent redistricting commission, enshrined in Article XXI of the California Constitution as a result of 2008’s Proposition 11 and 2010’s Proposition 20. Newsom, as a result of the lack of constitutionality of his plan has requested a special election ballot measure to be voted on to temporarily bypass the independent commission, but in polls California voters have shown that they don’t like Governor Gavin Newsom’s redistricting plan, with just 36% of respondents backing the idea. The independent commission’s popularity holds support across the board with Independents (72%), Republicans (66%) and Democrats (61%).
Article I, Section 4 of the United States Constitution also provides for the United States Congress to be able to use legislation to alter any regulations California may spew if they feel it is necessary.
President Trump has in play a plan for a new census that will not count illegal aliens for the purpose of apportionment, a plan that 57% of likely American voters support. In such a scenario, California would lose two seats in the House, partially neutralizing California’s strategy to nullify Texas’s gains. Minnesota, if the move to eliminate illegal alien influence on apportionment is successful, would likely lose a seat, as well. Overall, Democratic-leaning states would also lose about 14 seats to Republicans, Republicans would take about 10 seats from Democrats in Republican-leaning states, and about 4 seats in Battleground states. It is also important to note that both Texas and Florida are expected to gain seats after the next census, but may gain one less seat each than estimated if illegal aliens are no longer counted for apportionment. As a result, the net change in favor of the Republicans would be about twelve seats. Revolver News also suggests the net Democratic Party loss of seats would be about a dozen.
If Trump succeeds in securing legislation to eliminate mail-in voting (this would not affect absentee voting) due to voting fraud associated with mail-in voting, a further shift away from Democrats and in the direction of the Republicans would also likely occur, possibly so much so that the State of Oregon where all voting is performed by mail-in ballots may shift from blue to purple, and possibly even to a Republican majority. Some of the folks in my political circles have suggested the same might be true for California since many of them believe California’s Democratic Party stranglehold is partially due to election integrity issues that includes negative influences due to mail-in voting.
For those who argue to let California fail, it is important to recognize that policies in Gavin Newsom’s California influences other states. A case in point is the recent crash in Florida in which big rig driver Harjinder Singh made an illegal U-Turn and killed three people in the resulting crash. Singh, an illegal alien, obtained a commercial driver’s license in California. In response, the Trump Administration has paused the issuance of all worker visas for commercial truck drivers. Singh’s request for a federal work permit was originally rejected in September 2020 by the Trump Administration, but the decision was reversed in June 2021 under President Biden’s Administration. That federal work permit then allowed Singh to obtain the CDL in California – a state that issues CDLs regardless of immigration status.
The blood of those dead in Florida is not only on Gavin Newsom THE DESTROYER’s hands, but the Democrats in the Biden Administration as well.
And my discussion here about the destructive policies of Gavin Newsom and the Democrats in California is only scratching the surface of the political carnage in the once Golden State. The exodus will continue if things don’t change. That said, President Trump is determined to “Save California.”
I won’t hold my breath on that one. California will likely need to completely collapse before it’ll be able to be scraped up from the bottom of the barrel.
— Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
