California Governor Gavin Newsom at a press conference, during the UN Climate Change Conference, COP30, in Belem, Brazil, November 11, 2025. Adriano Machado/Reuters

California Gov. Gavin Newsom pulled no punches at the COP30 climate talks in Brazil on Tuesday, calling President Donald Trump an “invasive species” and a “wrecking ball” during discussions about the US absence from global climate action .

Newsom, a Democrat widely viewed as a likely presidential candidate in 2028, is the most high-profile US political figure attending the talks in the Amazon city of Belém. The Trump administration made the unprecedented decision not to send a high-level delegation to the annual talks — the latest move in its sharp pull away from global climate action.

Trump has spent the past year teari

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