Top 80 Gavin Newsom Quotes

Make no mistake: conversion therapy is not about ‘praying away the gay.’ It’s an emotional torture against our most innocent citizens: our children.

San Franciscans know we live in the most beautiful city in the world, a jewel on the edge of the Golden Gate.

Guys like me don’t necessarily progress very far, which is fine.

I’m sick and tired of politics and politicians as usual.

While it was refreshing to finally see an openly gay man speak at a Republican convention, it doesn’t remove the stain of selecting Mike Pence, America’s most anti-LGBT governor.

If you’re not open, you’re not transparent, you’re still holding on to vaults of information, you’re not going to build that trust.

You’d be hard pressed to find a bigger champion of high-speed rail than me when the bond went to voters. I believed in it.

People don’t care anymore because they don’t believe in us; they don’t trust us. And that’s why we should change politics, not just accept the cynical frame that, ‘Well, that’s just politics.’

Sometimes I will make CliffsNotes of my CliffsNotes.

I’ve never been a fan of pretense or procrastination. After all, our state is defined by its independent, outspoken spirit.

Are we going to solve the issue of poverty? Absolutely not. Are we going to have an impact? I’m committed to it, and if we don’t, I’ll have no regrets because we’re going to try everything we can.

We do not have the right to discriminate against people.

The arts can play a vital role in revitalizing neighborhoods, using and improving vacant space, bringing new jobs and new sense of opportunity, and improving public safety by generating more foot traffic and more eyes on the street.

It’s nature-nurture, right? I’ve been nurtured by Californians.

There’s a secret sauce in California, and I hope people pay attention to it.

I’ll be kicked out before I rust out.

My daughter’s met Hillary Clinton, so she’s got a strong bias. But she, of course, parrots me and goes, ‘Oh, Donald Trump, I don’t like him!’ I’m like, ‘That’s good!’

As Mayor of San Francisco, I will work hard to ensure that, in the event of natural or man-made disasters, San Franciscans are prepared and our City is protected.

As mayor of San Francisco, I will provide the vision and work hard to make San Francisco a beautiful, well-planned city with excellent housing and transportation options.

I did not love reading, spelling, math and science. I struggled. I was a terrible speller.

If we continue to fight the National Rifle Association on their home court, which is the legislative front, I think we’ll continue to be frustrated. But when you have an ability to go directly to the public, that’s a completely different field of engagement, and I think the NRA is not adept at that kind of engagement.

There was a lot of hype about social media in President Obama’s first campaign. It was important, but it wasn’t as important as I think people let on.

City government can and must help San Franciscans prepare for emergencies in order to avoid tragedy where possible and minimize loss of life and property when emergencies occur.

You don’t have to be something to do something.

Prop 8 did something that no other state in the history of this country has done. It took away the rights of people that already were legally affirmed. Imagine someone putting something on the ballot saying your wedding, your marriage is no longer valid.

You can love me or hate me and disagree with me, but you sure as hell know where I stand.

The Republican Party – that was the end of the Republican Party. What Pete Wilson did with the xenophobia and the negative attitude, all this sort of anti-crime backlash.

The kind of cynical politics of divide and conquer, that’s shameful stuff, and I don’t know – people live their life like that, but I don’t know how they look back and feel good about themselves.

Accessing capital to start a business can be a daunting process, especially for entrepreneurs who start out with a great idea, but have no real familiarity with the business world.

Separate is not equal. Civil unions are civil unions. Marriage is marriage. They’re different institutions.

Even though he’s a third-generation San Franciscan, my father’s very European in some ways, and he loves wine.

We recognize that the arts are an essential part of San Francisco’s cultural vitality.

San Francisco can no longer afford to be a city divided between downtown and neighborhoods, with a downtown that becomes a ghost town when workers go home for the evening.

You only get one chance in this thing called life. I know that is a bit maudlin and obscure, but it’s a fact, and you can make a profound difference in people’s lives without having a title in front of your name.

No-Drama Obama? Yeah, that’s not me.

Good people can disagree.

Involvement in the arts engages kids in their community, improves self-esteem, reclaims at-risk youth, and builds the creative skills that are required of a 21st century workforce.

I made bad decisions. That being said – the question is, does the public care about that?

The question for politicians here is fundamental: You can read the polls, or you can change the polls. Stand up on the things you believe in.

I’m not courting labor. I come from a labor background. To me, it’s just intuitive.

During the 1990s, San Francisco lived through one of the most intense economic booms of its history.

Street and park trees provide tremendous benefits to cities.

The economy is not immutable; it’s not about natural laws. It’s about rules, and we make the rules.

If high-wage, high-cost nations like Germany and Japan can compete on exports, California can.

We can build new housing while preserving the quality and character of adjacent residential districts and ensuring infill development strengthens the surrounding neighborhood.

Even if Donald Trump’s successful, it’s the beginning of the end if this rhetoric persists in the Republican Party.

When Californians see something we truly believe in, we say so and act accordingly – without evasiveness or equivocation.

I think Thanksgiving is the perfect occasion to break open a buttery, oaky Chardonnay from California.

San Francisco lags behind other communities in providing a vital, vibrant and ecologically sustainable urban canopy, as well as open space in the city.

We must continue to step in and stand up to resist reckless rhetoric and actions in a peaceful and forceful manner.

We have rules that no longer are relevant to the world we’re living in. Our regulatory system can’t keep up.

Historically, San Franciscans have not valued street trees as much as other communities have.

But living in uncertain times does not mean San Franciscans must live in fear.

As Mayor, I will fully support my Arts Commission and its professional selection committees so that they can commission a full range of public art that is daring and, when appropriate, daringly traditional.

We are not going to turn our backs on people who have been persecuted, turn our backs on people who have been threatened by terror.

I have differences of opinion within my own family, an Irish Catholic family. So, I do respect those that disagree.

Government is the ultimate monopoly. And monopolies, as any economist will tell you, often breed complacency and a lack of innovation.

I’m much more optimistic about this next generation because this is the first global generation.

It was difficult to realize, ‘I’m lieutenant governor.’ And Brown appropriately reminded me of that.

I’m really more of an executive.

Separate inherently is not equal. There’s a reason why $45 million was spent against marriage equality. It’s because people understand the word does have meaning. And equality comes when we accept the same notions and the same institutions for everyone, regardless of race and gender and regardless of sex orientation.

If Wikileaks didn’t resolve that question for folks – at the end of the day, there are no secrets. We’re living in a glass neighborhood, in a fishbowl, and technology, white hat hackers, the folks that are doing the right thing with hacking.

California is a bellwether state. California was the first state in the United States to overturn the laws against interracial marriage. It took 19 years for the rest of the country to come around to that point of view.

San Francisco businesses face many challenges, including high rents, regulatory burdens, and the rising cost of workers compensation insurance and employee health plans.

I’m not a pundit. I don’t want to be a pundit.

Since Sandy Hook, I have sat back as a father and been mesmerized by the inability of the federal government to do anything substantively on gun safety.

I really feel it’s time to dissolve the current relationship of governor and lieutenant governor by running as a ticket.

I don’t learn in a certain way, but I have other skills.

Founders Den provides the kind of collaborative and creative atmosphere to foster new ideas not only for emerging new businesses, but government as well.

You’ve got to change incentives for good behavior as opposed to just disincentivizing bad behavior.