In a 30-second ad that will begin airing on Fox News on Monday, Newsom, who is running for re-election, is urging fed-up Floridians to move to California, which he says still believes in protecting personal freedom. “It’s Independence Day. Let’s talk about what’s happening in America. Freedom. Your state is under attack by your Republican leaders, banning books, making it harder to vote, restricting speech in classrooms, even criminalizing women and doctors,” Newsom says. The ad shows DeSantis shaking hands with former President Trump with the words “Freedom is under attack” “I urge all of you who live in Florida to join the fight or in California where we still believe in freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of choice, freedom from hate and freedom to love,” Newsom added. “Don’t let them take your freedom away.”
Both DeSantis and Newsom are considered potential presidential candidates for their parties, having developed national profiles through their leadership in two of the nation’s largest states. Polls show DeSantis trails only Trump as the presidential choice among GOP voters, while Newsom has said he has “below zero” interest in seeking the White House. DeSantis and his state party sparked national controversy by passing the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which prohibits teachers as young as 4th grade from teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom. He was also one of the GOP governors who curtailed voting rights amid Trump’s false claims of rigged elections in 2020 and moved to severely restrict abortion even before the Supreme Court’s decision last week to overturn Roe v. Wade. Newsom has previously boasted that California’s economy is healthier than Florida’s and has shown an appetite for Republican engagement across the country. Here’s the best place to watch 4th of July fireworks in D.C. Biden’s moves on abortion haven’t quelled progressive anger The 54-year-old governor joined Trump’s social media platform last month in what he said was an effort to debunk “Republican lies.” “This could get … interesting,” Newsom wrote in a post on Twitter. The Hill has reached out to DeSantis’ office for comment.