Right before Gavin Newsom’s appearance, Halle Berry stuns the audience by saying he is “undermining women” and “not fit to be the next president.”

Halle Berry took an unexpected opportunity to criticize California Gov. Gavin Newsom after he vetoed a bill supporting medical care for menopausal women two years in a row.

While speaking at The New York Times’ DealBook Summit on Wednesday, Dec. 3, Berry, 59, discussed women’s health, her wellness company, Respin Health, and more in a candid speech.

The Catwoman actress then took aim at Newsom, 58, during her summit appearance, with the politician scheduled to speak just two guests after her. Newsom made the decision to veto the Menopause Care Equity Act — AB 432 —for the second year in a row in October. The law has been backed by Berry and would have made it easier for women to receive medical treatments to address the effects of menopause, per Politico Pro.

Berry said of Newsom, “Back in my great state of California, my very own governor, Gavin Newsom, has vetoed our menopause bill, not one, but two years in a row.”

“But that’s okay, because he’s not going to be governor forever, and with the way he has overlooked women, half the population, by devaluing us in midlife, he probably should not be our next president either,” she continued, drawing an audible reaction from the crowd. “Just saying.”

She made the comments after mentioning that Illinois had become the first state to mandate coverage for hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Responding to Berry’s comments in a statement, a spokesperson for Newsom told PEOPLE, “The governor has deep admiration for Ms. Berry’s advocacy and looks forward to working with her and other stakeholders on this critical issue. He shares her goal of expanding access to menopause care that too many women struggle to get.”

“He vetoed the bill because, as written, it would have unintentionally raised health care costs for millions of working women already stretched thin — something he’s determined to avoid,” the spokesperson added.

“We’re confident that by working together this year, we can expand access to essential menopause treatment while protecting women from higher bills,” the statement continued.

Newsom’s term is set to end in January 2027, and he’s unable to run again due to term limits. In October, he told CBS News Sunday Morning that he will consider whether to run for president after the 2026 midterm elections.

Elsewhere in her speech on Wednesday, Berry told women, “The days of outliving men by doing it in poor health are over,” telling them, “Why? Because we simply deserve better.”

“At this stage in my life, I have zero f—- left to give,” she insisted.

Discussing what brought her to the event                  , the star said, “In 2025 there is a lot to still be talked about and discovered and uncovered, especially if you are a woman who is navigating midlife and thoughtfully considering your longevity, because in 2025 I, Halle Berry, and women of my age are simply devalued in this country.”

“Our culture thinks that at 59 years old, I am past my prime, and that women my age start to become invisible in Hollywood, in the workplace, on social media. Women are pressured to stay forever 35,” Berry went on. “We’re complimented if we seem to be aging backwards or defying gravity, as if that’s even possible, and if we somehow manage to look younger than our years, we’re suggesting that that’s the gold standard that our worth should be measured by.”

She shared, “We’re encouraged to contort our bodies and our faces in truly extreme ways to chase this elusive fountain of youth. And sadly, I have to admit, I too, feel this pressure every single day … I feel that pressure to change myself in order to stay seen, relevant and desirable.”

“The question is for whom? … I don’t know, but what I do know is as long as I let my worth be defined by my physical self, I am in a losing battle. Because the truth is, we cannot turn back Father Time. And guess what? We shouldn’t have to,” Berry told the crowd.

Berry has spoken openly about experiencing a rough start to menopause without being properly educated and how that led to her women’s wellness company, Respin Health.

During a panel at a Bare It All event in June, the Oscar winner told moderator Tamsen Fadal, “I had no idea that I was in menopause at this time of my life.”

“I was 54 years old, no doctor that I had had even mentioned the fact that I would enter into menopause. So I had this unrealistic idea that maybe I would — okay, don’t laugh — but maybe I would just skip it,” Berry admitted.