Washington Post hits 'bully' Newsom 'grandstanding' in Walgreens, abortion fight: 'Abuse of power'

California Governor Gavin Newsom, D, has "abused" his power by punishing Walgreens over access to the abortion pill, mifepristone, the Washington Post's liberal editorial board said.

Newsom announced that his state would be canceling a contract with the company after Walgreens said it wouldn't distribute the drug in 20 states where they were threatened with legal action.

"California won't be doing business with Walgreens-- or any company that cowers to the extremists and puts women's lives at risk. We're done," Newsom tweeted on March 6.

The Post's editorial board accused the Democratic governor of "bullying" the company to score political points.

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom was criticized by The Washington Post for canceling a $54 million contract with Walgreens over where it distributes the abortion pill. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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"Republicans aren’t the only ones finding opportunities to bully private companies in culture-war battles," the paper's editorial board began.

While Newsom was picking a fight with Walgreens, the company was actually "helping [to] expand abortion access in California," they noted.

Newsom's "overreach" would give reason for conservatives to "retaliate" and "further cleave the economy along political lines," the board feared.

Attorneys general from several red states warned Walgreens, CVS and other pharmacies in February that if they distribute the drug in their state they would be violating state and federal laws.

Michael Moore has called for a national boycott against Walgreens after the pharmacy chain said they will not distribute abortion pills in states where Republican official have threatened legal action.  (REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/Andrew Kelly)

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The paper defended the company for simply following the law.

"For Mr. Newsom, Walgreens’s offense isn’t breaking the law but following it…file this in the category of no good deed going unpunished," the board wrote. 

While the recent rule change allowing retail pharmacies to distribute the drug is facing legal battles, pharmacies like Walgreens and their employees are caught in the middle, the paper noted. 

The Democratic governor was using the conflict to create his own "political opportunity" and "abuse" his power.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom heads to a press conference in Half Moon Bay, Calif., on Jan. 24, 2023. (Dai Sugano/MediaNews Group/East Bay Times via Getty Images)

"For Mr. Newsom, the pharmacies’ legal difficulties represent a political opportunity. The governor’s announcement said the review of the state’s Walgreens contracts is ‘ongoing’ — meaning that the company can bend the knee to Sacramento or risk further economic hits," the board said. "That’s an abuse of government economic power."

In January, the Food and Drug Administration announced that retail pharmacies could now distribute mifepristone in person or by mail, thereby increasing access to the drug.

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The Biden administration partially implemented the change last year, announcing that pharmacies would no longer enforce the requirement that women must pick up the drug in person. The FDA's action formally updates the pill's labeling to allow the vast majority of retail pharmacies to distribute them.

Fox News' Sarah Rumpf contributed to this report.