Gavin Newsom’s sarcastic reply to Bed Bath & Beyond refusing to open stores in California is going viral

Bed Bath & Beyond, which shut down all 360 stores in 2023 after filing for bankruptcy, is attempting a comeback. Yet its new leadership declared that California would not see any reopened locations. California Gov. Gavin Newsom replied to the news in a very blunt way, and it quickly went viral.

Bed Bath & Beyond skips California, and Newsom responds

The company’s executive chairman, Marcus Lemonis, recently explained his reasoning in a post on X. He insisted the choice wasn’t political but instead based on what he called the “reality” of doing business in California. He blamed higher taxes, fees, and wages in California for making operations unsustainable.

“California’s system makes it nearly impossible for businesses to succeed, and I won’t put our company, our employees, or our customers in that position,” Lemonis tweeted, sharing a full statement as an image attached to the tweet.

Newsom clearly wasn’t buying it. He quote-tweeted a post sharing the news with a short but sharp line, saying, “The company that already went bankrupt and closed every store across the country two years ago? Ok.”

His reply, packed with snark, spread quickly across timelines. His tweet has been viewed nearly 16 million times, liked over 300,000 times, and retweeted/QRTed over 22,000 times in less than two days, with many praising his ability to deliver a clapback. At the same time, MAGA Republicans filled the replies and QRTs with criticism, accusing Newsom of ignoring California’s economic challenges.

The internet piles on with jokes and cheers

Despite partisan outrage, much of the internet celebrated Newsom’s remark. One user admitted, “I just cackled I’m sorry.” Another posted, “lmfaooooo idgaf just make him president already. We deserve to go down as a nation with a hot sassy b*tch from California.”

Others jumped in to defend the state. “Watching random ppl hate on California meanwhile if given any chance we know they would visit and even move here on an instant,” one commenter wrote. “Ooooo your fake outrage is nothing WEST COAST WILL ALWAYS REPRESENT AND BE AHEAD OF THE GAME.”

Many echoed a similar sentiment, saying things like, “We don’t want them in our state anyway.”

Another user added humor, comparing the announcement to long-dead chains. “Blockbuster video, RadioShack and Circuit City have announced they’re refusing to do business in California as well,” @FrancisWegner joked.

Newsom has made a habit of injecting sharp commentary into national debates, and this latest post fit perfectly into that pattern. His comments are diverting the spotlight back to himself, whether people love or hate them.