Gavin Newsom’s DARK message to those struggling with addiction

California has been facing a homeless crisis for a long time, and Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is of the mind that in order to solve it, the homeless need less rules and regulations and more freedom to appease their addictions.

“Clean and sober is one of the biggest damn mistakes this country’s ever made,” Newsom said once in a statement about the homeless crisis, noting that he has been known to “self medicate” with a glass of wine as well.

Founder of the Dream Center in Los Angeles, Matthew Barnett, calls it “one of the most discouraging statements ever made by our governor.”

“When I heard that comment I’m like, we’ve given up. We have no belief that people can change. We have no belief that people can escape darkness. And when I heard that, my jaw dropped. It was almost like something that was said that came from the spirit of darkness,” Barnett tells BlazeTV host Allie Beth Stuckey on “Relatable.”

“It really was. Kind of like a really creepy, defeatist mentality,” he continues.

“The great accuser,” Stuckey agrees. “You’ll never get better. You’ll never defeat drunkenness or whatever.”

Barnett’s foundation helps those struggling with homelessness and addiction, and Barnett tells Stuckey that he has seen people with fentanyl addictions successfully get clean.

“They’re getting free and getting clean, and they’re excited. They’re praising and worshiping the Lord,” he explains.

Barnett believes Newsom’s attitude is a “total slap in the face” to those who are actively trying to change.

“That comment was simply kind of like the cultural feeling over the last five years. We can’t overcome stuff. We can’t win. We can’t fight poverty. We can’t achieve on our own,” he says, adding, “And so we just kind of have to rebuke that message every day by the way that we live.”

Want more from Allie Beth Stuckey?

To enjoy more of Allie’s upbeat and in-depth coverage of culture, news, and theology from a Christian, conservative perspective, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.