The Newsom-DeSantis Debate

 Last night, I watched the debate between Gavin Newsom and Ron DeSantis. I should mention here that I am a California native and current resident who knows a thing or two about Newsom.  As I watched the post-debate "expert analyses", my gut feeling is that they were largely based on what end of the political spectrum the commentators were on. I don't think either governor scored a knockout blow, but if I had to pick a winner, it would be DeSantis, who I was rooting for and who is my preferred candidate.

Newsom, to his credit, was at a disadvantage going in. The debate was on Fox, the moderator was Sean Hannity, and the third problem was his state-California. From crime to leftist prosecutors like LA's George Gascon, to homelessness, to illegal immigration, to taxes and regulations, to the numbers of California residents fleeing to other states (like Florida), Newsom had a lot to answer for. Hannity hit him with a lot of hard questions, backed up by empirical evidence, as to the state of California and its myriad of problems. On occasion, Newsom did not answer specific questions.

Newsom had to defend the indefensible, and he did so aggressively. He defended his state and attacked Florida in every way he could even insisting that California was in better condition than Florida when asked about his own state's problems. The only thing he left out when attacking Florida was the alligators, which California, thankfully, doesn't have. He also attacked DeSantis, calling him a bully and a liar. DeSantis gave as well as he got, and it was clear that these two men do not have a high opinion of each other. 

As to who won the charm contest, there was no clear winner. Newsom came across as what he is, a slick operator. On the other hand, I wasn't convinced I would want to share a few beers with DeSantis, but I could care less about charm and charisma when it comes to politicians. I care about what they believe and what they will do in office.

Non-California voters should beware the smooth-talking Newsom. He has been a disaster as governor. To be fair, California has suffered from a long line of bad governors before Newsom; Jerry Brown, Gray Davis, Arnold Schwarzenegger, the list goes back decades. Newsom took over a state in bad shape and made it much worse. Of course, none of that matters to liberal Democrat voters.