California Governor Gavin Newsom filed a $787 million defamation lawsuit against Fox News on Friday, June 27, 2025, alleging the network falsely portrayed him as lying about a phone call with President Donald Trump during tensions over National Guard deployment in Los Angeles.
The lawsuit, filed in Delaware Superior Court where Fox News is incorporated, centers on coverage by Fox host Jesse Watters regarding communications between Newsom and Trump during protests that erupted following federal immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles on June 6, 2025.
According to the complaint, Newsom and Trump spoke for approximately 16 minutes during a call late on June 6 or early June 7, 2025, depending on the time zone. The lawsuit states that during this conversation, Trump never raised the demonstrations in Los Angeles that had begun that day, nor discussed the National Guard. When Newsom attempted to discuss the situation in Los Angeles, Trump steered the conversation away from the topic.
The dispute intensified when Trump told reporters on June 10, 2025, that he had spoken with Newsom “a day ago,” implying a conversation occurred on the same day that 700 Marines were deployed to Los Angeles. Newsom quickly refuted this claim on the social media platform X, stating there was no call that day.
The lawsuit alleges that on the evening of June 10, Watters aired an edited clip of Trump’s remarks during “Jesse Watters Primetime” that removed the president’s claim of speaking to Newsom “a day ago.” According to the complaint, Watters then asked viewers why Newsom would lie about Trump never calling him, while simultaneously displaying a screenshot of Trump’s call history that showed the most recent call was indeed on June 7, as Newsom had claimed.
The show displayed a chyron reading “Gavin Lied About Trump’s Call” during the segment. Newsom’s attorneys argue this constituted defamation, as Fox News had access to call records that proved the governor’s version of events was accurate.
The $787 million damages request mirrors exactly the amount Fox News paid to settle a defamation case with Dominion Voting Systems in 2023 over false claims about the 2020 election. Newsom referenced this precedent in his statement, declaring that “Fox News should face consequences — just like it did in the Dominion case.”
The complaint also accuses Fox News of violating California’s Unfair Competition Law by engaging in deceptive business practices. Newsom’s legal team argues the network acted with actual malice and was motivated to curry favor with Trump by falsely branding the governor as a liar.
Newsom indicated he would drop the lawsuit if Fox News retracts its claims and Watters issues an on-air apology. The governor’s attorneys sent a letter to Fox News on Friday outlining these conditions for dismissal, describing the network’s conduct as blatantly unethical.
Fox News responded by dismissing the case as frivolous. The network stated that Newsom’s lawsuit represents a transparent publicity stunt designed to chill free speech critical of him, and indicated it would defend the case vigorously while expecting dismissal.
The defamation suit emerges from broader tensions between Newsom and the Trump administration over federal deployment of California National Guard troops to Los Angeles. Trump ordered the deployment on June 7, 2025, after protests began following Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations that resulted in 44 arrests, including two minors, with only five of those arrested reportedly having criminal histories.
Newsom previously filed a separate lawsuit against the Trump administration and the Department of Defense on June 9, 2025, challenging the federal takeover of California National Guard units without gubernatorial consent. That lawsuit argues the deployment exceeded presidential authority and violated constitutional principles of state sovereignty.
Legal experts note that public officials face extremely high standards in defamation cases, requiring proof of actual malice under the Supreme Court’s New York Times v. Sullivan precedent. However, Newsom’s case benefits from documented evidence showing Fox News had access to call records that contradicted the narrative presented to viewers.
The lawsuit represents an escalation in the ongoing feud between Newsom and conservative media, with the governor pursuing the case in his personal capacity rather than as a state official. Newsom’s team indicated that legal costs would come from campaign funds, and any successful proceeds would support anti-Trump causes.
