Governor Gavin Newsom challenged Governor Ron DeSantis to a debate nearly a year ago. It took a minute and some Sean Hannity prodding until DeSantis finally agreed to debate Mr. Hair Gel. But now that we are getting down to it, will Newsom debate DeSantis? And is a certain creepy old man getting nervous about it?

Does the over-gelled California politician not remember when he was not that popular in his own state and nearly was recalled. He wasn’t recalled, however. So maybe he has some newfound confidence in that fact. Why not throw down a little debate challenge to a Republican candidate.

Here is a little recap of how the challenge went down.

Since last September, Gavin Newsom, the ambitious, proudly liberal governor of California, has been tauntingly challenging Ron DeSantis, the ambitious, proudly conservative governor of Florida, to a debate. He would even agree, he said, to let the right-wing Fox News host Sean Hannity moderate.

On Wednesday, Mr. DeSantis accepted.

“You heard Gavin make the offer,” Mr. Hannity said on his show. “Your answer is?”

“Absolutely,” a smiling Mr. DeSantis replied. “I’m game. Let’s get it done. Just tell me when and where.” – New York Times

Are you getting Elon Musk versus Mark Zuckerberg vibes?

I was a little flummoxed when I heard about this debate challenge months ago and heard DeSantis had agreed to it. Why on earth would DeSantis agree to debate Gavin Newsom. It did not make any sense to me. Gavin Newsom wasn’t running any sort of campaign. Oh sure, there might be some small group of constant critics out there who think that Gavin Newsom will indeed be the Democratic candidate for President. I didn’t pay them much mind. There will always be a group like that out there. But now, I must admit, they may be on to something. It’s all becoming clearer.

So the details of this said debate, I guess, are still being hammered out, and there are even rumors of ole Gav trying to wiggle his way out of it now.

He wants a controlled environment where real people have no ability to respond to anything he says, which is exactly what he’s used to living in his insulated deep blue kingdom.

Putting all this together, it sure looks like Newsom is just looking for an excuse to bail. Never in a million years did he expect DeSantis to accept his debate challenge. Red State

New Rumors

However, there are NEW rumors that Joe’s handlers and even Kamala’s horde are becoming a little antsy about the possible look of the debate.

Biden advisers bristle at Gavin Newsom’s plan to debate Ron DeSantis https://t.co/WJY0nlMkh1 via @nbcnews

— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) August 27, 2023

Oh my.

According to four different sources, the president’s political advisers now believe that Newsom debating DeSantis carries more risk than reward, and when you read between the lines, there’s one glaring reason they don’t want to see the clash take place. – Red State

Well, let’s see here. What could possibly be making the old man and Kamala nervous? Or their people, anyway.

Could it be the stark contrast of how each state is doing? California’s high taxes, crime, or lack of any sort of strong district attorneys, or maybe the COVID restrictions, to name a few. DeSantis could easily mop the floor with Newsom in all of these areas.

Or maybe it is simply the optics of having a coherent, well-spoken, alert, younger, and I guess handsome, fit, and slick, fast-talking speaker in Newsom that Biden’s handlers worry about? The people may take pause with Biden as the candidate once they see a stark comparison in Newsom standing there debating a Republican candidate?

But this paragraph from Red State says it all,

If it seems like Newsom is running a shadow 2024 campaign, that’s because he’s obviously running a shadow 2024 campaign. He wants to be the nominee, and he’s biding his time, trying to stay in the spotlight until there’s an opening. Harris is threatened by that, but so is Biden, whose ambition to keep living like a king on the taxpayers’ dime is unmatched. If the current president becomes incapacitated in office, that’s just fine with him. He’s going to milk it for all its worth instead of doing the honorable thing.

What about Kamala? Wouldn’t she take Biden’s place at the top of the ticket if he were to step aside? I don’t know how many times she has reinvented herself now, but there is no amount of speech therapy practice or wardrobe makeover to deem her likable or smart. The Dems will also find a way to push her off the ticket in favor of oil-slick Newsom.

After having said all that, I still think Biden will be the candidate. Jill Joe won’t give that up. Not on his own free will anyway. Maybe he’ll get pushed out somehow, but regardless, we still need a strong Republican candidate, and seeing DeSantis debate Newsom might be interesting after all.

Feature Image: Office of the Governor of California/Flickr/Attribution-(CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)