On the question of education during Thursday night's debate, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis fired with both barrels at California Governor Gavin Newsom and left gaping holes in Newsom's already tattered record.

WATCH:

Gavin Newsom had more kids locked out of school for a longer period of time in California than anywhere else in the country. It was working class kids.

His kids were in private school — they were in class in-person.

He is owned by the teacher’s union. pic.twitter.com/cIpesdK8RC

— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) December 1, 2023

You had more kids locked out of school for a longer period of time in California than anywhere else in the country. It was the working class kids, it was the middle income kids. His kids were in private school, they were in class, in person. He locked people out because of the teachers union. He is owned by the teachers union, you will never cross the teachers union. Lock. Stock. And Barrel.

Where's the lie? Despite Newsom's attempt at filibustering and changing the subject, the facts bear DeSantis' words out.

Republicans in the California legislature and parents backed DeSantis' claims, showing up Newsom for the liar that he is.

Gavin was the Lockdown Governor, period. And our kids continue to pay the price, over 50 percent can’t read at grade level. Almost 2/3 fail to meet math standards.

— James Gallagher (@J_GallagherAD3) December 1, 2023

My kids did not see the inside of a classroom for almost a full 1.5 years in California public school. @GavinNewsom record on education is the worst in the country. https://t.co/TUhDOdSDM4

— Jay Bhattacharya (@DrJBhattacharya) December 1, 2023

But most telling is evidence from EdSource, California's own organization that gauges progress in education. On pandemic learning loss, they had this to say:

In the second year fully back in school after remote learning, California school districts made negligible progress overall in reversing the steep declines in test scores that have lingered since Covid struck in 2020.

There was a slight improvement in math while English language arts declined a smidgeon, and the wide proficiency gap between Black and Latino students and whites and Asians showed little change.

"Wide proficiency gap" which is reflected in exactly what DeSantis said: By keeping schools closed, Newsom hung the working class and middle-income children out to dry. The upper-middle class and rich were able to do homeschooling pods or shift to private schools. Students with two working parents or lower income? Not so lucky.

Only 34.6% of students met or exceeded standards on the Smarter Balanced math test in 2023, which is 1.2 percentage points higher than a year ago. In 2019, the year before the pandemic, 39.8% of all students were at grade level. Only 16.9% of Black students, 22.7% of Latino students, and 9.9% of English learners were at grade level in 2023.

Year-over-year scores in English language arts dropped less than 1 percentage point to 46.7% for students meeting or exceeding standards in 2023; in 2019, it was 51.7%. The large proficiency gaps between Black and Hispanic students compared with Asian and white students showed little change. In 2019, the year before the pandemic, about 4 in 10 students in the state and 3 out of 4 Asian students, the highest-scoring student group, were at grade level in English language arts.

DeSantis nailed Newsom to the wall on this and exposed his dirty record on education for all to see. Newsom stepped on his own rake with his fact-devoid rant that Florida was restrictive in terms of education and banned LGBTQ and racial books when Florida's focus has been setting clear guardrails about parental choice. Those guard rails? The parents are the ones who choose what their child should be exposed to. 

It is important to expose the “book ban” hoax about Florida schools.

Florida empowers parents by ensuring curriculum transparency and will continue to ensure that our tax dollars are spent on education, not indoctrination. pic.twitter.com/mQdr4Adbgj

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 8, 2023

Newsom tried to deny that gender ideology and LGBTQ indoctrination were not presented until middle school. Still, Newsom butting his nose into Chino Hills and Rocklin school districts' parental notification policies surrounding gender-affirming care once again shows that Hair Gel doth protest too much.

Hat tip to Fox News host Sean Hannity, who framed his questions through the lens of actual facts and data. Newsom did his best to stoke outrage by using culture war language and ad hominem attacks, but his record could not be denied. The fact that Newsom could not counter with facts and figures disputing the data presented put major dings in his slick veneer. It was an epic takedown that all of America needed to see.

Let's hope they were paying attention.