Gavin Newsom takes vacation to Montana — one of 22 states that California bans state-funded travel to over anti-LGBTQ policies

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Gavin Newsom takes vacation to Montana — one of 22 states that California bans state-funded travel to over anti-LGBTQ policies
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference at Manny's in San Francisco on August 13, 2021.Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
  • Gov. Gavin Newsom of California took a trip with his family to Montana on Friday.
  • State-funded trips to Montana are banned in California because of the former's LGBTQ policies.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom of California is spending time with his family in Montana — a state on California's list of banned places to travel to using state funds.

The Office of the Governor said Newsom did not use state funds for the trip.

The ban on state-funded trips to Montana, along with 21 other states, is because of the state's anti-LGBTQ policies.

"The travel ban applies to expending state funds," Erin Mellon, the communications director for Newsom, told Insider. "The Governor's travel is not being paid for by the state. Connecting the two is irresponsible and falsely implies there is something untoward."

Newsom departed for a vacation to the Treasure State Friday but did not initially announce where he was traveling to. He will return home on Monday, Mellon said. The parents of Newsom's wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, have a property in Montana. The couple were also married there in 2008, CalMatters reported.

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Newsom has been scrutinized for his personal outings in the past.

In 2020, as COVID-19 cases were rising in California, Newsom attended a private dinner party at the French Laundry after advising against social gatherings. His attendance received widespread criticism.

Newsom aired political ads in Florida on Sunday criticizing Gov. Ron DeSantis' LGBTQ and abortion policies in Florida.

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