On Thursday November 30th, California Governor Gavin Newsom will debate Florida Governor and current presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis on Fox News’ “Hannity” program.
According to Fox News, “As part of a two-hour Hannity special, Fox News’ Sean Hannity will be moderating a 90-minute debate in Alpharetta, Georgia, which has emerged as a critical swing state in recent election cycles…The audience-free debate will put a spotlight on the two governors’ leadership approaches in their states and each will make the case to the nation whether red or blue policies are best for the country. Hannity will press them on key issues including the economy and inflation, immigration and the border, and crime.”
Okay.
When the contest was originally booked, it was billed as the imminent future of the Democratic Party v. next generation of the Republican Party.
Now? Not so much.
If the 2024 presidential election were the Oscars, this week’s DeSantis-Newsom debate would be a D-list celebrity autograph signing event at the Beverly Garland Hotel…featuring Gavin Newsom as Billy Mummy and Ron DeSantis as the guy who played Gopher on “Love Boat.”
In other words, Chris Rock would be perfectly safe here.
Let’s start with Newsom.
Currently, more California voters disapprove of the job Newsom is doing than do approve, and by a margin of 49% to 44%. This is according to a new poll from the University of California-Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies.
Related: Gavin Newsom for president?
Not being wildly popular in your home state does not bode well for a presidential run. It’s sort of like parents voting against their own kid at a school talent show.
Additionally, Newsom went on a tone-deaf trip to China, where he appeared more concerned with the photo shoot at the Great Wall than getting anything substantively done for Californians.
And, did you catch Gavin’s ‘impromptu’ pick-up basketball game against a group of 10-year-old Chinese boys? The highlight was when he ran over one kid like a tank in Tiananmen Square, squashing a dissident.
It was a legit mow down too, not a Vlade Divac flop.
And then you have the melting of the 10 Freeway near downtown Los Angeles.
Newsom shocked the city by blaming the LA fire on arson. The smart money was on global warming.
As of this printing, no arrests have been made and the freeway is back up and running.
However, that whole episode highlighted what kind of disrepair Los Angeles and other big cities in California have fallen into on Newsom’s watch.
DeSantis isn’t having any easier a year. Long thought of as being the next big thing, he’s starting to look more like Todd Marinovich than Shohei Ohtani.
According to the Real Clear Politics average, DeSantis is trailing former President Donald Trump in the national polls by 46 points. But in Iowa, a state DeSantis must win in order to continue running, he trails Trump by…only 30 points.
In DeSantis World, that’s considered good news.
Trailing by 46 points is like getting lapped by another driver in the Indy 500. At some point the mercy rule has to kick in to stop this cruel spectacle.Realistically, this primary could be over before it starts.
Like Newsom, DeSantis is barred from running for reelection as governor due to state term limit laws. Republicans control both U.S. Senate seats in Florida, and going back to the House of Representatives, where he once served, would be seen as a step backwards.
For DeSantis, it’s president or bust. There’s nowhere else to go…except for maybe, Dancing with the Stars.
Earlier this year, the futures of these two ambitious governors looked limitless. Now, instead of playing the showroom in Las Vegas, they’re playing the lounge in Laughlin.
Er, excuse me, Alpharetta, Georgia.
John Phillips can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on “The John Phillips Show” on KABC/AM 790.