California Governor Gavin Newsom mocked right-wing conspiracy theorist podcaster Joe Rogan for being shocked over President Donald Trump’s announcement of a new Truth Social subscription feature offering users early access to his posts for as much as $100,000 a month.
Because Trump frequently uses the platform to announce major government decisions and other official developments, subscribers could receive potentially market-moving information before the public.
The arrangement has already drawn legal scrutiny. A lawsuit filed this week argues that the feature violates the First and Fifth Amendments, while critics have also raised questions about whether giving paying subscribers advance access to government announcements could facilitate insider trading or market manipulation.
Rogan was incredulous when informed about this on his program by comedian Shane Gillis, who regularly appears on The Joe Rogan Experience, remarking:
“Wait a minute, is that real? How is that legal? Who’s telling him this is a good idea? You know how crazy that is? $100,000 to get earlier tweets? That’s literally crazy.”
“Not even $100,000 a year, $100,000 each month. … Can you imagine charging $1.2 million a year? He’s just on a grab.”
Shortly afterward, Newsom shared a meme he dubbed a contender for the week’s best Reddit post. It mocked Rogan’s approach to conspiracy theories by showing Bart Simpson using a telescope to represent Rogan’s focus on conspiracies, followed by a blindfolded Bart labeled “Joe Rogan on Trump’s Corruption.”
Others have mocked Rogan in response.
Rogan has criticized the Trump administration more and more in recent months even as he continues to flip-flop.
In January, he remarked on Trump’s deployment of ICE agents around the country, saying the administration’s immigration crackdown is being used as a distraction from the Epstein files scandal.
Rogan has also criticized Trump for campaigning on “no more wars” before attacking Iran, remarking that “this is why a lot of people”—MAGA voters—”feel betrayed.”
