In the wake of the election, Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom has risen to a new level of fame after he was tapped as the "future of the Democratic Party" in the wake of Kamala Harris's loss.
That of course meant it was only a matter of time before all the internet's young people turned him into a meme. And THAT of course meant it was also only a matter of time before he became an object of people's thirst.
That time has now come—and it has reached Newsom himself.
On a recent episode of his podcast Politickin', Newsom discussed being labeled the internet's new favorite "zaddy"—even though he doesn't know what the word means, exactly.
Of course this all started with the internet comparing Newsom to Patrick Bateman, the titular psychopath from American Psycho, played in the film adaptation by Christian Bale.
That meme arose when some liberals on social media suggested that what Democrats need is a stone-cold psycho with the same level of diabolical, sociopathic charisma as many right-wing politicians.
Before long, the American Psycho comparisons soon followed, given that Newsom and Bateman do bear a striking resemblance: lantern-jawed, slicked-back-hair, tall and fit in a way that does wonders for a business suit—the whole package.
So, of course, thirst followed and so did the "daddy" and "zaddy" shoutouts.
But Newsom had to ask his podcast co-hosts, Marshawn Lynch and Doug Hendrickson, for some guidance as to what exactly that means after some teens in a Gap store informed him that he's now famous on TikTok.
Apparently it's left him quite confused. He told Lynch and Hendrickson:
“But I don’t know how it’s a compliment that I’m some vampire or some ‘American Psycho.' That doesn’t work for me.”
Lynch agreed that those might not exactly be fully complimentary, but "zaddy"—a slang term for a sexually magnetic older man—definitely is. He told Newsom:
"They want you, cuz. They on your bumper right now."
On TikTok, people were definitely amused by Newsom's bewilderment—even if some thought it seemed like he definitely knows what the word means and was loving every minute of it.
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Will "zaddy gavvy" have the sam sway with Gen Z in 2028? Here's hoping that "American Psycho" charisma only gets stronger over the next four years.
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AMC