West Coast beach town mayor says Walz reminds him of Gavin Newsom: ‘Different sides of same blue coin’

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California GOP mayor blasts Walz ahead of VP pick's fundraising visit

Newport Beach Mayor Will O’Neill highlights concerns with California’s progressive policies ahead of Democratic VP nominee Tim Walz’s fundraiser in the Golden State.

Republican Newport Beach Mayor Will O'Neill blasted Minnesota Gov.Tim Walz's leadership ahead of the Democratic vice presidential candidate's fundraising stop in the California beach town on Tuesday.

"Frankly, Gov. Walz’s enduring image as governor was watching Minneapolis and the fire station in that city burn," O'Neill told "Fox & Friends" co-host Steve Doocy on Tuesday about the George Floyd riots in 2020. "We saw images like that actually here in California as well, in Los Angeles, Santa Monica and places like Oakland. You end up kind of realizing that our governor out here, Gov. Newsom and Gov. Walz are sort of the different sides of the same blue coin when it comes to public safety."

"So I would love to take him down to our police station, have a conversation with our police chief and get some community members who really support the police department here at Newport Beach to talk to him about why and why that really matters," O'Neill continued.

Walz will be traveling to Los Angeles today to speak at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Convention and will be speaking at a glitzy fundraiser in Newport Beach later in the day, where tickets go for as high as $100,000.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's policies and leadership was slammed by Newport Beach Mayor Will ONeill on "Fox & Friends" ahead of Walz's stop in the California beach town.

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O'Neill said that while Walz is on his "donor tourism" tour, he hoped the Democrat would notice the tangible difference between how deep blue Los Angeles is run compared to conservative-run Newport Beach.

"I hope while he is in his armored vehicles going through the streets of Los Angeles that he actually spends time looking out and seeing the streets filled with encampments and crime and the empty business fronts, and by the time he gets to Newport Beach where we've got paved roads and a clean environment, that he will actually spend some time looking around and say, okay, maybe that, maybe Newport Beach," he continued.

The Republican mayor also addressed criticisms that Vice President Harris has backed away from several of her progressive policy positions after becoming the Democratic presidential nominee.

"Well, she has to, right?" O'Neill said. "If you were to come up with five words that describe California, would public safety come within the first 25? I don’t think so. There are pockets of sanity in California, like Newport Beach. But, I don’t think anyone is comparing California to their hometown and saying I want more of that. So she has to change her policy positions."

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Vice President Harris and running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have faced criticism for trying to appear more moderate closer to the election after previously touting their far-left policy positions. (RONDA CHURCHILL/AFP via Getty Images)

Ahead of Walz's stop, O'Neill welcomed Walz with a warning to leave his progressive policies at the door.

"As the Mayor of Newport Beach, a City with a 7-0 Republican City Council, I welcome Gov. Walz to spend time with our City leadership while he’s dipping into some of our residents’ pockets," he wrote on social media. "We will showcase a city that didn’t defund the police, that embraces conservative economic values, that decreases debt and increases quality of life, that did not allow protesters to burn out local businesses, and that cares about human flourishing. If Gov. Walz is as interested in learning policy from a well-run city as he is in political donations, my door will be open."