Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images; Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images
- Ron DeSantis has accepted his California nemesis Gavin Newsom's challenge for a primetime debate.
- "Absolutely. I'm game. Let's get it done," DeSantis told Fox News on Wednesday.
- Newsom's camp now wants DeSantis to confirm a date, and "put up or shut up."
It looks like Elon Musk isn't going to fight Mark Zuckerberg anytime soon, but we now have a governor-on-governor primetime debate to look forward to.
On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis finally accepted Gov. Gavin Newsom's debate challenge, meaning we might have a Florida Man vs. California Man cage match on the books. Except they're going to do what Maye Musk wishes her billionaire CEO son would do — "fight with words only."
"Absolutely. I'm game. Let's get it done. Just tell me when and where. We will do it," DeSantis told Fox News's Sean Hannity.
Newsom already has some dates in mind, per his spokesperson.
"Governor Newsom has been challenging DeSantis to debate for months and sent him a formal debate offer last week. Nov. 8 or 10 — DeSantis should put up or shut up. Anything else is just games," a spokesperson for Newsom told NBC in a statement.
Newsom's team has proposed a 90-minute debate that will be aired live on Fox News, according to a July 28 proposal obtained by NBC.
"This event will be marketed as a Red v. Blue debate that is focused on the impact of representation at the state level," said the proposal.
Fox News host Sean Hannity is the proposed moderator, so it looks like Newsom wants to show he isn't afraid of walking into the lion's den. Newsom previously said he'd be willing to debate DeSantis with no notes.
And DeSantis seems pretty prepped. He's been cutting his teeth on the campaign trail against his one-time mentor, former President Donald Trump, been advised on how to seem likable, and been trained by a Nirvana-shirt-wearing-Matt Gaetz — so all bets are off.
DeSantis and Newsom both began their gubernatorial careers in 2019 when they were elected in Florida and California, respectively. They were subsequently re-elected for their second and final terms in 2022.
They also have connections to Trump. DeSantis was Trump's political protége before the latter started calling him "Ron DeSanctimonious." And Newsom used to be married to Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host who's engaged to Donald Trump Jr.
But that is just about where their similarities end.
The proposed debate would be a long overdue smackdown between the feuding governors, who seem to disagree on practically everything. The pair have needled each other on illegal immigration and adopted completely opposite approaches toward Disney, among many other issues.
With so many differences, it is no surprise that the governors are now itching for a showdown on the debate stage.
For DeSantis, the debate could be a welcome a boost to his 2024 presidential campaign, which has seen him lagging far behind Trump in multiple GOP primary polls. Even for Newsom, who says he won't run for president this cycle, this is an irresistable, golden opportunity to humiliate his Republican rival on primetime TV — if he does well on the debate stage.
That said, DeSantis and Newsom squaring up for a war of words won't be nearly as exciting or bloody as tech bro billionaires duking it out in the Vegas Octagon. But in the world of politics, this is as good as it's going to get.
Representatives for DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider sent outside regular business hours.