Conservative TV host and commentator Sean Hannity has surprised fans by expressing admiration for California’s left-wing Governor Gavin Newsom. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Hannity said he enjoys a friendly relationship with the Governor. “From the first time we met, we just hit it off, and there was a certain relationship that developed,” he said. The firebrand conservative added that Governor Newsom is “never contentious” and is fun to be around.
The pair have appeared together in several media events recently, including a Fox News interview in Sacramento when Hannity told Newsom he appreciates his passion for the Golden State and his willingness to stand by his principles. Nevertheless, he confronted the Democrat with statistics on homelessness in California and the high number of people leaving the state. Newsom defended his record and said his administration got 68,000 people off the streets last year but conceded that he needs to do more. “Unlike most politicians, I own this,” he said.
Hannity also persuaded Newsom to participate in a high-profile debate with rival Governor Ron DeSantis after the two engaged in a public spat on social media.
Floridian DeSantis sent a plane load of illegal migrants to California – a self-declared sanctuary state – in June, prompting Newsom to accuse him of kidnapping and call him a “small, pathetic man.” The subsequent debate, staged in Georgia, brought the two Governors head-to-head in a tense exchange during which DeSantis argued that Newsom’s left-wing ideology had driven people away from California.
Newsom responded that DeSantis wanted to “roll back hard-earned national rights on voting rights and civil rights, human rights and women’s rights.” He claimed that DeSantis had restricted access to contraception and abortion and was bringing the Sunshine State back to the 1960s.
The Great Red v Blue State Debate, as it was billed, was moderated by Sean Hannity, and topics covered included the economy, the border, immigration, crime, and inflation.
