Newsom's Affair with Intoxicated Subordinate Warrants Scrutiny the Media Has Ignored
Source: https://www.facebook.com/americanspectator/. "Newsom’s Affair Partner Reveals She Was Blackout Drunk During Encounters | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics." September 22, 2026. spectator.org
The Gist
The author argues that Gavin Newsom took advantage of his secretary Ruby Rippey, who was often too drunk to remember their sexual encounters, and that this should be seen as a serious abuse of power rather than just an old, forgivable affair. She's frustrated that the media and public have brushed off Rippey's revelations about her blackout drunkenness, focusing instead on minor factual inconsistencies rather than the deeper question of whether Rippey could truly consent.
Conclusion
Gavin Newsom's conduct in continuing a sexual affair with his subordinate Ruby Rippey—who was repeatedly blackout drunk and struggling with addiction—constitutes predatory abuse of power that deserves serious public scrutiny and condemnation, rather than the dismissive treatment it has received from the press and public.
Premises
- Rippey has publicly revealed in her Vanity Fair essay that she was blackout drunk (unable to form memories) during multiple sexual encounters with Newsom
- Widely accepted standards (from sex education curricula and university consent guides) hold that a person who is incapacitated by alcohol cannot legally or ethically consent to sex
- Newsom held significant power over Rippey as her boss (mayor of San Francisco) and as her best friend's husband, creating a coercive power dynamic even without explicit coercion
- Newsom was aware of Rippey's condition and even acknowledged mid-affair that they 'can't do this anymore,' yet continued the relationship for months afterward
- Rippey's addiction to alcohol and cocaine worsened during the affair, and she has since reframed her earlier self-blaming statements as a lack of true agency
- Mainstream media coverage (Sacramento Bee, Guardian, New York Times) focused only on factual discrepancies with Newsom's memoir account, ignoring the consent and power-imbalance implications entirely
- The public and Reddit commentators have dismissed the story as inconsequential, comparing it to a mutual affair between consenting adults, despite the evidence of incapacitation
Assumptions
- The standards for consent articulated in educational/institutional guides (used for general conduct or campus policy) should apply with equal moral force to this political/personal context
- Rippey's current retrospective account (post-recovery) is more reliable and truthful than her earlier 2018 statement claiming full agency
- A power imbalance alone (boss-subordinate) is sufficient to render consent questionable even absent explicit coercion or threats
- Public and media indifference to the story reflects a moral failure rather than a reasonable judgment that the affair is old, private news
- Newsom's continuation of the affair despite acknowledging problems demonstrates predatory intent rather than mutual, if unwise, ongoing entanglement