California Governor Gavin Newsom announced plans to launch a satirical memecoin called "Trump Corruption Coin" as part of his political strategy to mock President Donald Trump's involvement in the cryptocurrency space. The announcement was made during a high-profile appearance on the Pivot podcast and at the California Agenda: Sacramento Summit on September 2, 2025.
Newsom framed the token as political satire and a fundraising tool, with proceeds directed toward redistricting work and voter outreach through his "Campaign for Democracy." He explicitly stated: "We're about to put a meme coin out... it's Trump Corruption Coin... this is one of the great grifters of our time." The governor's team declined to provide technical details, leaving unclear whether it would be a fully tradable token, NFT, or limited collectible.
The move comes as a direct response to Trump's crypto activities, including his Solana-based TRUMP token released earlier in 2025 and the recent launch of the World Liberty Financial (WLFI) token, which briefly boosted the Trump family's net worth by over $5 billion. Newsom's announcement timing strategically precedes WLFI's trading debut.
This is part of Newsom's broader trolling strategy that includes selling parody merchandise with slogans like "Make America Gavin Again" and joining Truth Social as one of the first Democratic politicians. He instructed his team: "It's no permission slip now... You just go and we go hard, and we don't stop."