Adam Carolla wants out: Californians are 'dumb,' Newsom is a 'slippery eel of nothingness'

Adam Carolla speaking into a microphone and lifting one hand while clad in a casual long-sleeve gray shirt
Adam Carolla says he's had it with California and intends to leave the state, though he hasn't settled on a destination. (Michael S. Schwartz / Getty Images)

Comedian Adam Corolla says he is leaving the Golden State, lobbing plenty of criticism for government leadership and ordinary Californians in his potential wake.

"I have to leave," the author and radio personality said recently on "The Sage Steele Show" podcast. "I don't even know where I'm going. This isn't me cheating on you for another woman. This is, 'I hate you so much. I'm moving into a motel room and not dating for six years.'"

Read more: Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani buys La Cañada Flintridge mansion from Adam Carolla for $7.85 million

That's inflammatory talk from the San Fernando Valley native, and he recognized how his younger self would have thought him a "fool" for leaving, joking that everyone in the Carolinas, Nashville or Wyoming used to want to move to the West Coast.

Carolla said he has stuck around in the sunshine thus far because his twins still have to finish high school, but noted, "I will be attending their high school graduation in a U-Haul." (He recently sold his La Cañada Flintridge home to Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani.)

According to the former "Loveline" host, California's issues with crime, homelessness and housing are "self-imposed," with Gov. Gavin Newsom to blame.

"He says nothing," Carolla said. "He's a sociopathic, narcissistic empty bag. And we vote for this guy. He says nothing!"

Read more: California is still losing Californians. It’s no mystery why

Corolla also had choice words for the Californians who continue to vote for the governor, whom he characterized as a "slippery eel of nothingness."

"It's like ride or die with Gavin Newsom. And it's like, can you just admit you made a mistake and try something else? And it's like, no, we cannot," he said.

"He's a narcissistic 10-cent head buffoon and nobody knows it ... people in California are too dumb to realize who he is."

City leadership also didn't escape Carolla's ire: He insisted that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass won her election only because she's a "woman of color" and that the "competent" Rick Caruso was rejected by voters for being "old," "white" and "rich."

Enjoy the Texas humidity, Adam.

Get notified when the biggest stories in Hollywood, culture and entertainment go live. Sign up for L.A. Times entertainment alerts.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.