Joe Rogan torches California governor candidate Katie Porter over viral outbursts: 'What a monster!'

AUSTIN, TEXAS: Joe Rogan didn't hold back as he went after California gubernatorial hopeful Katie Porter this week.

The podcaster tore into Porter after several viral clips showed her snapping at both a reporter and her own staffer, calling her a “crazy lady” and even taking a jab at her looks.

Joe Rogan rips into Katie Porter for screaming at her staff

Joe Rogan went off on Porter during the Wednesday, October 15, episode of 'The Joe Rogan Experience'.

“This lady who’s running for governor of California, this crazy lady Porter or whatever the f**k her name is?” Rogan said. “Katie Porter that screams at her staff, ‘Get out of my f**king shot!’ She looks like the way she talks. Like, the way she talks when the cameras are rolling and she doesn’t think anybody’s going to see it. Like, what a monster!”

The podcast king was referring to a Politico clip from October 8, which showed Porter shouting at a staffer who accidentally interrupted her during a meeting she was recording. The video went viral on social media.

That meltdown followed another viral moment where Porter got huffy with a journalist during an interview and tried to storm off set. The question she didn’t like was a pretty standard one, according to her critics.

Katie Porter tries to put out the fire

After the footage sparked backlash, Katie Porter made the rounds trying to clean up the mess. On Tuesday, she appeared on 'Inside California Politics' and later joined a Zoom call organized by the Working Families Party, the progressive group known for backing liberal Democrats and sometimes running their own candidates.

“I absolutely understand that I could have been better in those moments,” Porter said during the call, according to The New York Times. “I’m going to hold myself to that standard, to do better and to acknowledge that I fell short.”

The CBS affiliate in Sacramento had also released footage last week showing Porter laughing off a reporter’s question about her message to Republican voters, then threatening to walk out.

The next day, Politico dropped the aforementioned throwback from 2021 that showed Porter cursing out an aide who interrupted her mid-recording.

Porter addressed that one head-on. “What I did to that staffer was wrong,” she admitted in her Inside California Politics interview. “I’ve acknowledged it to her in that moment, and I’m acknowledging it now.”

Still, she defended herself. “I think people who know me know I can be tough,” she said. “But I need to do a better job expressing appreciation for the amazing work that my team does.”

Can Katie Porter recover?

Katie Porter’s campaign has been anything but boring. She’s gunning to replace Governor Gavin Newsom, who’s term-limited. The race doesn’t happen until June 2026, but it looks like it’s already heating up.

Porter has been leading in early polls thus far, but that advantage might fade if voters keep seeing her go off on camera. Many Californians are still undecided, and the candidate field is far from set.

Behind the scenes, Democratic power players are reportedly trying to convince Senator Alex Padilla to jump in. Meanwhile, billionaire Tom Steyer, who ran for president in 2020, just fanned speculation by starring in a new ad for Newsom’s redistricting measure. In the ad, Steyer spoke like a man eyeing another campaign trail.

If he joins the race, Porter’s path gets even steeper.

Katie Porter won't 'back down' from 'being tough'

On 'Inside California Politics', host Nikki Laurenzo didn’t let Katie Porter off easy. She asked her if she has the temperament to be governor and whether voters should brace for more explosive videos.

Porter appeared to dodge that question. “I can tell you what I’ve told you, which is that I am taking responsibility for this situation, and I’m also not going to back down from fighting back for California, from being tough.”

She promised to move forward with her campaign, adding that she’d spent the day meeting with local Democratic groups and labor unions.

It’s not Porter’s first time getting advice on how to handle interviews, either. In her 2023 memoir 'I Swear: Politics Is Messier Than My Minivan', she recalled a campaign consultant warning her to treat reporters with respect.

“The rule is to honor the interviewer,” she wrote. “Do not interrupt, do not argue, and definitely do not say they are stupid.”