DeSantis Battles Newsom: Epic Debate Showdown Looms

Clear Facts

• Gov. Ron DeSantis accuses Gov. Gavin Newsom of running a presidential shadow campaign and causing a mass exodus from California.
• DeSantis and Newsom are scheduled to debate on Fox News on Nov. 30, discussing topics such as abortion, immigration, and the economy.
• U.S. Census Bureau data shows more Floridians moved to California than vice versa in 2021, with 1.16 per 1,000 Floridians moving to California and 0.96 Californians moving to Florida.

Ahead of their highly anticipated debate next week, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) called out Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) for running a presidential shadow campaign, warning Republicans to be wary of the Democrat in 2024.

“He is running a shadow campaign. Even people in his own party are saying that,” DeSantis said on Fox News. “A lot of Democrats want to move Biden out.”

DeSantis launched attacks against Newsom he has used before, blaming the Democratic governor for a “mass exodus” out of California and cautioning Republicans that Newsom wants to lead the country under his state’s policies.

“I think what he’s done in California, Gov. Newsom, causing a mass exodus out of the state — you’ve really seen cities collapse there,” DeSantis said. “That is what he would want to do for this entire country, and it would accelerate the collapse we’ve seen under Joe Biden. So, the stakes are really high for America.”

DeSantis and fellow Republicans have frequently attacked California over its left-leaning policies, connecting Newsom’s leadership to a decline in the state’s population. DeSantis said, “People are flooding into Florida because we’ve stood for freedom and prosperity.”

“They’re leaving California because they can’t even keep the streets safe unless President Xi Jinping from China comes. Then they clean everything up,” DeSantis said, adding that otherwise, “people live in squalor.”

According to U. S. Census Bureau data, more Floridians moved to California than vice versa as recently as 2021, based on the numbers per capita. Jennifer Lynne Van Hook, director of the Population Research Institute at Penn State University, provided PolitiFact with an analysis of 2021 data, the most recently released state-by-state migration numbers, and found that 1.16 per 1,000 Floridians moved to California in 2021 and 0.96 Californians moved to Florida the same year.

When looking at the overall migration flow from 2021 data, 37,464 people from California moved to Florida, and 24,692 people from Florida moved to California in 2021.

DeSantis’s debate against Newsom will air on Fox News on Nov. 30 in Alpharetta, Georgia. Anticipated topics of discussion include the governors’ different policies on abortion, the border and immigration, the economy under President Joe Biden, and the overall condition of their respective states.

The Washington Examiner reached out to Newsom’s team for comment.

Clear Thoughts

Gov. Ron DeSantis is right to call out Gov. Gavin Newsom’s disastrous policies that have led to a decline in California’s population. While recent Census data shows more Floridians moved to California than vice versa in 2021, the larger trend cannot be ignored. Newsom’s leadership has caused cities to collapse and driven people to seek refuge in states like Florida, where freedom and prosperity are valued.

The upcoming debate between DeSantis and Newsom will further expose the Democrat’s failed policies and reveal the danger of his potential presidential ambitions. Republicans must remain vigilant against Newsom’s destructive agenda.

Let us know what you think, please share your thoughts in the comments below.

Source