Gov. Gavin Newsom is rolling out a taxpayer-backed freebie for new parents, promising hundreds of diapers for every baby born in California under a new statewide program.

The Democrat announced Friday that the state will partner with nonprofit Baby2Baby to hand out 400 free diapers to families leaving participating hospitals, starting this summer. The initiative, dubbed «Golden State Start,» is being billed as a first-in-the-nation effort to ease the high cost of raising a child.

«Every baby born in California deserves a healthy start in life,» Newsom said in a statement, touting the plan as part of his broader push to tackle affordability.

CALIFORNIA IS BROKE, BUT IT’S NOT TOO LATE FOR THE REST OF US

Under the program, hospitals will distribute the diapers directly to parents upon discharge. Officials said early rollout will prioritize facilities serving low-income patients on Medi-Cal, with plans to expand statewide.

During the program’s first year, it will be offered at about 65 to 75 hospitals that handle about a quarter of births in the state and largely serve low-income patients, Newsom’s office said, according to the Associated Press.

The move is the latest in a string of family-focused spending initiatives from the Newsom administration, which already includes free school meals and universal preschool for 4-year-olds.

Critics are likely to challenge the program’s price tag, particularly as California navigates a tightening fiscal environment. Fox News Digital has reached out to the governor’s office regarding the costs of the program.

According to the Associated Press, the state has allocated $7.4 million in last year’s budget to launch the free diaper initiative, and Governor Newsom’s latest proposal seeks an additional $12.5 million for implementation through the fiscal year ending in June 2027.

However, these spending goals collide with a sobering economic reality.

In its January budget overview, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) noted that while the administration officially projected a $2.9 billion deficit for 2026-27, the long-term outlook is far more dire. The LAO warned that the state faces structural deficits ranging from $20 billion to $35 billion annually over the coming years

The state has partnered with nonprofit Baby2Baby to manufacture the diapers under the label «Golden State Start.» (Governor Gavin Newsom)

State officials said that they are also looking at ways to take on major diaper brands and drive down prices.

Baby2Baby, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that distributes supplies to children in need, will handle manufacturing and logistics for the program. The group says diaper need is widespread, with as many as one in two families struggling to afford them.

CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICT INFORMS PARENTS PERIOD PRODUCTS ARE IN BATHROOMS FOR ‘ANY STUDENT WHO MENSTRUATES’

Co-CEOs Norah Weinstein and Kelly Sawyer Patricof praised the partnership as «historic,» saying it will help families during one of their most financially vulnerable moments.

«We are incredibly grateful to Governor Newsom for his ongoing commitment to combating diaper needs in California and could not be prouder to partner on this historic initiative that will support moms and babies at their most vulnerable time,» Weinstein and Patricof said in a joint statement.

During the program’s first year, it will be offered at about 65 to 75 hospitals that handle about a quarter of births in the state and largely serve low-income patients, Newsom’s office said. (Governor Gavin Newsom)

The announcement comes two years after Tennessee and Delaware became the first U.S. states to offer free diapers to families enrolled in their Medicaid programs, which provide healthcare to low-income families.

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Tennessee families can go to pharmacies to pick up 100 diapers per month for children under two. The Delaware program, which began as a pilot before the state extended it in 2024, provides individuals with up to 80 diapers and up to one pack of baby wipes per week in the first 12 weeks.

Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.

El 8 de diciembre de 2024, Nahuel Gallo tenía previsto cruzar la frontera entre Colombia y Venezuela. Todo parecía en orden, hasta que un agente de la Dirección General de Contrainteligencia Militar (DGCIM) descubrió que era gendarme. “Ahí ya me trataban diferente. Me esposaron los pies, me esposaron las manos», contó en una entrevista exclusiva de TN Internacional que será transmitida este sábado a las 14:00.

Cuatro días después, su nombre empezó a circular en los medios argentinos con la noticia de que había sido detenido por el chavismo. Lo que ocurrió en ese cruce fronterizo, en sus propias palabras, fue una trampa que arrancó con una búsqueda en su celular.

Después de ese tenso intercambio con los agentes de la DGCIM, el gendarme argentino permaneció 448 días en cautiverio en Venezuela, sin la posibilidad de comunicarse con su familia. Ahora, Gallo cuenta su historia por primera vez.

El viaje y la frontera

Según contó en diálogo con la periodista Carolina Amoroso, Gallo salió de la Argentina el 6 de diciembre. Voló de Chile a Bogotá, luego a Cúcuta y desde allí cruzó, vía terrestre, hacia Venezuela. Cuando llegó a Migraciones, alrededor de las 8 de la mañana del 8 de diciembre, le dijeron que antes de sellarle el pasaporte debía pasar por una entrevista.

“Cuando vino el agente a entrevistarme, yo no sabía quién era. No sabía si era el SEBIN (Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia), la Policía, no entendía la diferencia entre una fuerza y la otra. Estaban de civil. Tenían arma, pero no tenían placa identificatoria”, relató.

Él mostró toda la documentación reglamentaria para ingresar. “Tenía dólares en efectivo, pero no le dio mucha importancia. Lo que le importaba era ver mi celular”, agregó.

Gallo no tenía fotos uniformado. “No soy de sacar muchas fotos, ni posando con las armas, nada. Tenía fotos del bebé, de las carreras, paisajes”, aseguró.

Pero el agente no se detuvo en las fotos. “Entró a WhatsApp. Le pregunté qué hacía y me dijo que quería ver si hablaba mal de su presidente. Puso ‘Chávez’, no salió nada. Puso ‘Maduro’ y ese fue el detonante”.

En ese chat con su esposa, María Alexandra Gómez, había una conversación donde hablaban de la realidad del país. En ese momento, el intercambio con el agente se tensó aun más. “Me dijo que yo hablaba mal de su presidente, que quién era yo para decir eso. Le dije que era una conversación vieja, que no tenía nada que ver, que era una conversación privada con mi mujer”. Cuando Gallo salió un momento, los policías que estaban afuera también lo minimizaron: “Me dijeron ‘todo el mundo habla mal de Maduro’. Pero el agente no lo tomó igual”.

En esa primera instancia, Gallo no reveló que era integrante de la Gendarmería Nacional. “Dije que era aduanero, que trabajaba en la Aduana en el área de Seguridad. Nunca dije que era gendarme”.

Leé también: Nahuel Gallo denunció en la Justicia las torturas que sufrió en Venezuela: “Me duele volver a esos momentos”

El integrante de las fuerzas venezolanas revisó con más profundidad el celular y encontraron una foto que lo delataba. “Ahí ya me trataban diferente. Me esposaron los pies, me esposaron las manos. Y también se enojaron porque les había mentido, porque no era aduanero sino personal de una fuerza”. Su delito, aparentemente, fue enviar un mensaje en el que mencionó a Maduro. “Acá en Venezuela nadie habla mal del presidente porque si no la pasa mal”, le dijeron.

Antes de ese momento, ya lo habían golpeado. “Estaban enojados por lo de Maduro. Entonces me taparon la cabeza por primera vez. Yo decía, ¿por qué me tapan la cabeza?”.

“Lo había pensado”

Los 448 días de cautiverio tuvieron momentos oscuros, pero el más terrible fue el instante en el que lo detuvieron. “Para mí lo peor es diciembre. No saber qué iba a pasar conmigo, no saber de María, de mi bebé. Los golpes que te pegan por ser gendarme o por ser argentino. Estar 24 horas los siete días en la celda… uno piensa muchas cosas”, aseguró.

Y luego, confesó: “Siempre me preguntan si quise quitarme la vida. Y la respuesta es que lo había pensado”.

The Trump administration’s decision to declassify a batch of UFO and UAP files Friday drew unexpected praise from a prominent Democratic lawmaker. 

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., the leader of Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, cheered the release of dozens of never-before-seen images and videos, stating, «Transparency is the only path to truth.» 

«I am encouraged that the administration has finally heard my call and the call of millions of Americans to begin unsealing these files,» Gillibrand wrote on social media, adding that she has long advocated for the declassification and release of unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) files.

«This is another important step, but there is much more work to do,» the New York Democrat went on. «I will continue to fight to ensure the administration finally meets its legal obligation to the American people.»

DECLASSIFIED APOLLO MOON DOCS DESCRIBE UNEXPLAINED MYSTERIES, UFO LIGHTS ‘LIKE THE FOURTH OF JULY’

The Trump administration’s file dump, available on the newly created website war.gov/UFO, contains records related to UAP, including inexplicable lights and phenomena captured during the Apollo 12 mission in 1969 and Apollo 17 in 1972.

President Donald Trump in February directed the Department of War and other agencies to declassify and publish files related to alien and extraterrestrial life. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Friday that the administration would continue its declassification work.

GOP lawmakers widely praised the administration’s effort to bring more transparency to UAP-related material.

«This is a massive first step in the right direction,» Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., who has long pushed for the file release, said Friday.

Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., also called the move «historic» and said he hoped the file release would be the first of many.

The Pentagon’s disclosure also prompted tepid enthusiasm from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who omitted the Trump administration in his statement.

«For decades, UFO disclosure has been a distant object — unidentified and unexplained,» he said. «That’s starting to change. I’ll keep pushing until we land on the truth.»

The Apollo 11 spacecraft orbits the moon during NASA’s 1969 mission, marking a significant milestone in space exploration. (The Pentagon)

TULSI GABBARD TELLS PODCASTER ALIENS MAY BE REAL: ‘WE’RE CONTINUING TO LOOK FOR THE TRUTH’

Trump argued Friday that his administration’s transparency efforts related to government secrets far surpassed those of his predecessors.

«Whereas previous Administrations have failed to be transparent on this subject, with these new Documents and Videos, the people can decide for themselves, «WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?» Trump wrote on the social media platform Truth Social announcing the release of the files. «Have Fun and Enjoy!»

President Donald Trump holds a signed executive order on the declassification and release of records related to the assassinations of former President John F. Kennedy, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP)

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The Trump administration also declassified records last year related to former President John F. Kennedy’s assassination and the 1937 disappearance of Amelia Earhart.