DeSantis rehabilitated himself specifically by demolishing Newsom.
It wasn’t just that Newsom was awful, DeSantis seemed comfortable and confidant, with the awkwardness we’ve seen displayed on the hustings notably absent. Clearly, DeSantis’ political consultants were telling him to not be so obviously the litigator/lawyer, and “loosen up”. That was a mistake: people will take a pol at face value if they’re either a) genuine or b) able to fake it. DeSantis can’t fake it, so based on this performance, he should just lean in to the persona that works for him and let the chips fall where they may.
That said, only the most dedicated politics nerds tuned in at all, so the initial damage to Newsom will be limited. But what a treasure trove of clips and gifs and memes. It really was glorious.
I’m waiting for the rating results - how many people watched - and how many were democrats...