HBO
California Gov. Gavin Newsom told Bill Maher that he decided to go against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a debate—and a concurrent advertising blitz—because he felt Democrats weren’t “doing enough” to push back against him and the GOP’s cancel culture crusade.
Newsom debated DeSantis with a national TV audience on Dec. 1, just as DeSantis’ once-promising presidential campaign and Super PAC began bleeding staff as he ceded ground in polls to Nikki Haley.
It was fiery debate, hosted by Fox News, which saw the governors butt heads on their coronavirus responses, abortion, education, and taxes, with no shortage of personal shots being taken by both governors. There was also no clear objective for the debate, which reportedly irked Joe Biden’s advisers in the months that preceded it.