The Constitutional Battleground
TONY ROMAN VS. GAVIN NEWSOM
TONY ROMAN OF 'BASILICO'S PASTA E VINO’ TAKES ON GAVIN NEWSOM
IN FEDERAL COURT, WANTING TO REMIND AMERICANS THE CALIFORNIA
GOVERNOR IS A WOKE, LOCKDOWN TINY TYRANT! JOIN THE FIGHT
ROMAN’S LAWSUIT IS IN RESPONSE TO THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA SEIZING THE RESTAURANT’S
ASSETS, YEARS AFTER HIS LOCKDOWN DEFIANCE. CLAIMS CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS WERE VIOLATED.
Huntington Beach, CA; September 10, 2025 Tony Roman owner of 'Basilico's Pasta e Vino'
'Basilico's Pasta e Vino', a restaurant with a history of aggressive and provocative lockdown
defiance during Covid, filed a federal lawsuit on September 9, 2025 in the Central District of
California, against Gavin Newsom and the State of California, after its assets were seized by the
government long after the lockdowns and mandates ended. The filing claims Newsom and the
state violated Roman's constitutional rights, specifically the First, Eighth and Fourteenth
Amendments.
Roman did not file the lawsuit for his own benefit, as being awarded damages when suing a government
agency is almost impossible. He instead filed to establish a precedent, to continue his fight to defeat tyranny in defense of liberty and freedom on behalf of all of us, so the Anti-American big government enemy
never does it again, just like the war he waged against the lockdowns. He did it for all all fellow patriots!
View the actual Lawsuit Filing here.
Roman who also hosts the podcast 'Roman Rules', refers to Newsom as 'Gavin Pelosi', and
says, 'This little wannabe dictator is suddenly talking tough, trying to rebrand himself with his
manufactured masculinity, and at the same time trying to make people forget about how he
imprisoned Americans during the lockdowns, separated families and destroyed businesses.
Well with this lawsuit, I am going to drag him back into a fight he doesn't want, and expose him
as fraud, as he plans to make a run at The White House in 2028. His new act is embarrassing,
and I am going to remind everyone what a 'tiny tyrant' he really is at his core!”
When asked if there is anything Newsom could do to avoid the embarrassment, Roman
responded, “Maybe at minimum if he issues a formal apology for the wreckage he has
caused, reimburses American families and businesses for their losses, and resigns from office
immediately!”
No business in the country was more defiant during the covid lockdowns and mandates than
Roman and 'Basilico's Pasta e Vino'. He defied openly and aggressively, pledging his
restaurant as a 'Constitutional Battleground' on day one of the nation's first lockdowns on
March 19, 2020. He did so in defense of liberty and freedom, and in honor of those who have
risked and sacrificed everything to gift us and protect our cherished American way of life ... the
Founding Fathers and our brave military heroes.
Roman's business remained open and operated fully with zero restrictions, and when
Newsom's mandates were imposed, he hit back hard by banning masks entirely from his
restaurant and property, requiring proof of being unvaccinated for entry and even extending
their hours late into the night when curfews were ordered.
Roman promised to fight anyone who attacked his defiance based on his America first beliefs
and he did, including the city, the state, the county, the feds, Hollywood, the media, the
restaurant's landlord who tried evicting the business over his beliefs and even fellow citizens
who trashed Basilico's online reputation and by the hundreds threatened to kill him and burn
down his restaurant.
Roman responded further by mocking and taunting Newsom and the mandates by installing a
48 ft. billboard in Beverly Hills that read 'Leave the Mask, Take the Cannoli', his spin on the
famous quote from the movie The Godfather'. During vaccine mandates, he also installed a
huge wallscape on the boardwalk in Venice Beach that read 'Leave the Vax, Take the Cannoli'.
Roman said, "The enemy has been emboldened by the weakness demonstrated by Americans
who just rolled over during the lockdowns and mandates. And what’s more frustrating is the
stolen valor committed by those who are embarrassed by their complicity, as they suddenly try
to rewrite history, claiming to have been defiant. Tentative acts of defiance such as reopening
after already shutting down once, making masks optional, opening spaces partially, and
operating in stealth mode to avoid consequences are not good enough. It only weakens the
standard needed for fighting tyrants and winning. If other businesses would have followed our
lead when asked, we would have never been in this mess. So to them I say ... next time
remember, you're Americans. fight like it!"
CAL-OSHA, supervised by Joe Biden’s Federal OSHA, was enlisted by Newsom as one of his
gestapo styled California lockdown ‘Strike Teams’ and they tried pressuring Roman to comply
with the mandates when they visited his restaurant on several occasions. Roman refused them
entry. In early 2021 they returned with a Huntington Beach Police escort and a search /
inspection warrant. Roman again stonewalled them, No entry!
After a few years of silence, in late 2023, under the direction of Newsom, OSHA blindsided
Roman and seized his business bank account and all operating funds, in an apparent attempt to
cripple the business and force him to shut down once and for all. Roman promised his team and
supporters that he would never surrender and give the enemy satisfaction by closing the
business due to their actions. The lawsuit filed in U.S. Federal Court in the Central District of
California, is in response.
Roman said, "I cannot allow them to hit and run like this and have the last word. They started
this fight, and we need to try and finish it!" The outcome of this latest battle between Roman
and Newsom however will be determined by a judge, and not just Roman's uncompromising
fighting spirit. He understands this, saying 'We don't have a history of using the courts when
fighting. We prefer to stand on our own two feet, “But this time is different, and we will soon find
out once again if our judiciary finally has the spine to rule in favor of liberty and freedom and
against tyranny and treason.”
Until then, I am grateful to our supporters, especially our incredible legal team led by attorneys
Heather Gibson and K. Lawson Pedigo. Because they believe in our cause and the principles
of which our country was founded upon, we have a shot.”
About ‘Basilico’s Pasta e Vino’
Basilico’s is an Italian American restaurant in Huntington Beach, CA opened in 1999 by
Roman’s mother. When she fell seriously ill, as a tribute to her, Tony built and gifted her a new
restaurant at its current location in 2017. His mother passed away in 2023, and Roman
continues to operate the restaurant in her memory, serving all of her original recipes and dishes.
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