If the fireworks in your backyard weren’t enough, Governor Gavin Newsom aimed a few firecrackers at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Independence Day in a 30 second TV ad that aired on Fox News stations across Florida. In the ad, Newsom told viewers that their freedoms were under attack through the state’s policies on abortion, voting rights, book banning, and speech in classrooms, and then asked Floridians to join the fight…or join us in California.
As you can imagine, this didn’t go over that well with Florida’s elected officials. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-FL, swung back on Fox’s “Faulkner Focus” Tuesday, saying:
“There’s a saying in politics that you never punch down, right? You only punch up. And if I was Governor Gavin Newsom, I would be desperate to. Over 60,000 Californians have gotten their Florida driver’s licenses in the last three years. In Florida, we’re about freedom and faith and family. And in California, it looks like high taxes, crack pipe distribution centers, homeless tent cities and apps that you can download in order to report feces on the sidewalk. It’s no wonder that everyone is fleeing to the Sunshine State. Let me tell you, it’s not because of the humidity that is 100%. Us women we don’t appreciate that as you can see.
“But the thing that’s just crazy is that if he seriously thinks that that is going to work, it’s just reflective in his policies. They’re 20th in the nation in education, we’re number three. We have some of the lowest unemployment and low taxes in the country. They have some of the highest. This is a clear distinction in what works when it comes to governing a state. It is either trust your people, give people the option and the freedom to make the best decisions for themselves and their families, or you try to meddle in everyone’s lives. That’s what California does. In Florida, Governor DeSantis has led the charge in freedom, faith. And I’m telling you, this could be America’s governor going in even bigger in the future. And I think that spells disaster for a state like California.”
The ad draws sharp contrasts with conservative DeSantis who is said to be weighing a presidential run in 2024. But why the $105,000 ad buy in a state 2,000 miles away? Is Newsom just wanting to antagonize the Republicans who backed the recall against him? Or is Newsom reconsidering his future endeavors? Newsom told the San Francisco Chronicle in May that he has “sub-zero interest” in running for President. Conversations around the watercooler are asking if it could be getting a little chilly in Sacramento…?