Dem
51
GOP
49
The bad news is that there's another debate between politicians this week. The good news is that this one might be at least a little bit interesting, as it's not just going to involve candidates whose primary interest is not pissing off Donald Trump and his supporters.
We speak, of course, of the debate between Ron DeSantis and Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA). The clash of gubernatorial titans was on for a while, then off, then on, then off again, and now it's definitely on. Newsom has agreed to debate in hostile territory, as the debate will be hosted by Fox and moderated by Sean Hannity. That said, if you go into the lion's den and win, it's all the more impressive. And if you lose, well, nobody really expects you to beat a lion.
Truth be told, this is the rare situation where both candidates could end up as winners. DeSantis is primarily appealing to 2024 Republican voters and, to the extent that there's any hope left for him, this could be his last chance to get some momentum by owning a lib. For Newsom, who is appealing to 2028 Democratic voters, this is something of a national coming out party for him. If he performs well, it could give him an early lead in the 2028 horse race (with, admittedly, many, many laps to go).
The tête-à-tête begins a bit on the late side—9:00 p.m. ET on Thursday—and will be broadcast on Fox "News." And again, it could be interesting. At very least, there will be no Vivek Ramaswamy, which is a major selling point. This could also be one of the last debates of the 2024 cycle, since the Republican candidates' debates are reaching the end of their usefulness, and since Donald Trump figures to boycott the presidential debates. (Z)