Who Is Clavicular? Streamer Sparks Backlash After Attacking JD Vance And Praising Gavin Newsom

A fringe internet streamer has ignited an intense cultural uproar after disparaging Vice President J.D. Vance as 'sub-human' while effusively praising California Governor Gavin Newsom in a widely shared interview.

The remarks by Braden 'Clavicular' Peters, a controversial US livestreamer best known for controversial personal conduct on the Kick platform, have roiled political and digital communities because they merge extreme personal invective with electoral commentary. His appearance on The Michael Knowles Show has become emblematic of deepening cultural fractures within online political discourse, with Peters stating he would 'vote for Gavin Newsom 100 times over JD Vance' based on their physical appearances.

Controversial Views On National Figures

In an episode of The Michael Knowles Show, published on YouTube, Clavicular made a series of provocative statements about the comparative appeal of two potential 2028 presidential candidates: Vice President JD Vance and California Governor Gavin Newsom. During the broadcast, he was asked which candidate he believed would prevail and why.

Clavicular responded that Vance was 'sub-human,' citing physical attributes such as facial structure and body composition as reasons he considered Newsom superior, saying in part that Newsom 'mogs... Vance is obese, very recessed side profile, whereas Newsom is like 6'3' Chad.'

He later asserted that he would 'vote for Gavin Newsom 100 times over JD Vance,' indicating that his support was rooted in perceptions of physical appeal rather than policy analysis. The interview clip has been widely circulated on social media. A post on X (formerly Twitter) capturing Clavicular's remarks had garnered more than 1.6 million views within hours.

Political commentators have described such comments as symptomatic of a culture where online aesthetics and influencer identity increasingly intersect with political messaging, even when devoid of substantive policy discussion.

This episode has drawn comment from broader social media, including memes and side-by-side comparisons of Newsom and Vance that circulated earlier in 2025, where users labelled Newsom a 'Chad' and Vance a 'Chud' in mock political graphic form.

Who Is Clavicular? Internet Fame and Real-World Backlash

Clavicular, also known as Braden Peters, rose to prominence on Kick, one of the fastest-growing livestream platforms in the US. His content is associated with 'looksmaxxing,' a subculture focused on physical appearance optimisation. This identity has shaped both his appeal and his controversies.

Earlier in 2025, Peters faced widespread condemnation after a livestream showed him allegedly injecting his 17-year-old girlfriend with unapproved cosmetic peptides. This stunt drew warnings from medical professionals about the dangers of unlicensed medical procedures.

Separately, Peters became a viral figure on 25 December 2025 when a livestream clip showed him driving a Tesla Cybertruck as a man lay on the hood. The footage spread rapidly on platforms such as X and Reddit, prompting alarm among viewers. Initially, confusion and concern mounted over whether the person had been seriously injured. However, fellow streamer Adin Ross later confirmed that the individual was alive, easing some immediate public anxiety.

A New Breed of Political Pundit

Clavicular's comments have struck a nerve because they illustrate a growing phenomenon where individuals with large digital followings influence political discourse through personality and aesthetics rather than issues or expertise.

Political analysts have noted that the public reaction cuts across political silos. Critics have condemned his remarks as shallow and degrading to public figures, while others have treated the episode as a symptom of internet-centric political culture that privileges meme logic over substantive debate.

Some commentators have observed that truly substantive electoral conversations cannot be reduced to superficial comparisons of physical features, especially in the context of high-stakes national politics. Yet the episode has undeniably amplified Clavicular's platform, with clips of the Knowles interview circulating widely across political and cultural subcommunities online.

As election cycles approach, episodes like this signal a profound shift in how political narratives are shaped, not just by policy analysts and elected officials, but by the aesthetics-driven opinions of social media personalities.