DeSantis takes swipe back at Newsom after TV attack ads

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took a swipe at California counterpart Gavin Newsom after the Democrat started airing television ads in Florida that called on the state’s residents to fight against its Republican leaders.

“Everyone wants to talk about me and Florida,” DeSantis joked at a news briefing on Friday. “I’m just sitting here, little old me, doing my job.”

Newsom, who’s been trying to position himself as a foil against conservative leaders across the country, started airing ads in Florida earlier this month that say freedom is “under attack” in the state. DeSantis, who is widely viewed as a possible Republican presidential contender, shot back and accused Newsom of treating residents of his state like “peasants.”

“In Florida, we weren’t locking them down,” DeSantis said referring to the governors’ different approaches to dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

“We lifted our people up. We made sure to protect individuals’ freedoms.”

DeSantis pointed to the number of California license plates he said he’s seen in Florida lately, and said the West Coast state had been driving people away with “terrible governance.”

“It’s almost hard to drive people out of a place like California given all their natural advantages, and yet they’re finding a way to do it,” DeSantis said, pointing to problems with crime, homelessness and drugs he said had “destroyed” parts of the state. “When families are uprooting from the Pacific coast to go almost 3,000 miles in search of a better life, that’s telling you something.”