For years, California has been giving free medical care to illegal immigrants, but now the system is about to crash.
And while Newsom finally stated he would be pulling care from illegals, who are putting a major strain on the state’s Medicaid system, he then took no time at all to blame Trump for his problems.
Going back to December 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that healthcare coverage in California would be extended to more low-income families, regardless of their residency status, which would include the more than 700,000 illegal immigrants who live in the state.
The costs of the added healthcare coverage were estimated to be more than $3 billion annually.
Newsom called the legislation “a transformative step towards strengthening the health care system for all Californians.” His ultimate goal was to be able to provide universal healthcare for everyone in California, regardless of income or legal status.
Republicans pushed back on the idea from the outset, with state Senator Roger Niello, a Republican, stating, “Regardless of what your position is on this, it doesn’t make sense for us to be adding to our deficit.”
On April 2, 2025, Donald Trump issued a press release regarding trade deficits and tariffs in place with both our enemies and allies.
In part, the release stated, “Large and persistent annual U.S. goods trade deficits have led to the hollowing out of our manufacturing base; resulted in a lack of incentive to increase advanced domestic manufacturing capacity; undermined critical supply chains; and rendered our defense-industrial base dependent on foreign adversaries.”
The announcement continued that as of April 5, 2025, “Using his IEEPA authority, President Trump will impose a 10% tariff on all countries.”
The date on that is what is important, as it was just over a month ago that these tariffs were put in place, and almost immediately, some of them were paused due to countries reaching out to work out a deal.
Just two years after announcing illegals would get free health care in California, Newsom has announced that coverage will be frozen come January 1, 2026, blaming Trump’s tariffs even though Newsom had previously admitted the illegals were putting an extra strain on the state’s budget.
Newsom’s office declared, "Trump’s pendulum swings on tariffs have slowed the economy and weakened state revenues by a staggering $16 billion.”
The report continued, “[Newsom] refuses to turn his back on hardworking Californians, especially when it comes to their basic health care needs. But because of the $16 billion Trump Slump and higher-than-expected health care utilization, the state must take difficult but necessary steps to ensure fiscal stability and preserve the long-term viability of Medi-Cal for all Californians."
This is ludicrous, to say the least. There are likely few products on the shelves today impacted by Trump’s tariffs, as it is just far too soon for them to have an impact of that magnitude. It is Newsom’s failed policies that are to blame, not Trump’s tariffs.
