California Gov. Gavin Newsom is quickly (and calculatingly) attempting to solidify himself as a top contender for the Democratic nomination for president in the event Joe Biden bows out, and he’s gone about it primarily by sniffing around in the backyards of the red states that many of his former constituents have fled to by hundreds of thousands.

Most recently Newsom traveled to Florida, ostensibly on grounds to note his supposed concern about kids allegedly not being taught “real history” (read: woke history). But in reality, his visit was to try and tweak the state’s governor, Ron DeSantis, ahead of what is being widely speculated to be an announcement next month as to whether he intends to run for the GOP presidential nomination.

Newsom posted some photos Wednesday from his trip to the Sunshine State, with a book about African women conveniently being shown in the foreground of one of them:

Met with some librarians today while in Florida.

They shared with me the rich, diverse background of the town and what’s at stake if we ban our kids from learning our real history. pic.twitter.com/FjoLBmCKYX

— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) April 5, 2023

Newsom zeroed in on New College of Florida because of course he did:

California Governor Gavin Newsom is in Sarasota this morning meeting with New College of Florida students and faculty. The college has become the epicenter of the culture wars after FL Gov Ron DeSantis initiated a conservative transformation. pic.twitter.com/rbZ7rOhclh

— Zac Anderson (@zacjanderson) April 5, 2023

It’s all part of his $10 million campaign to visit red states (photos galore from which are on his Twitter page) to “learn more about the right-wing assaults across the country.”

Because apparently, California has solved all of its major issues, I guess.

In any event, as you might expect, Newsom got zinged into next week by conservatives including Floridians like former and current DeSantis officials alike who all pointed out not only the gall and hypocrisy of Newsom’s swing through Florida but also to let him know that the hundreds of thousands of Californians who high-tailed it to Florida ain’t comin’ back.

“Go home. You’re not getting those U-Hauls back,” former DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw quipped while later adding that Newsom, “ventured to Florida to hunt down ex Californians who live here now and try to tax us because he realized that pushing so many productive people out of his state has contributed to a budget shortfall. Nice try.”

“The absurdity of clueless Gavin Newsom posing with library books in Florida while the open air sewer previously known as San Francisco descends further into bloody anarchy is veep level dark comedy,” DeSantis strategic comms guy Matt Wolking observed.

“Gavin Newsom, like his in-laws who moved to Florida and donated to Ron DeSantis, prefers Florida over California. Also, Gavin Newsom banned state employees from traveling to Florida,” tweeted conservative commentator RB Pundit.

Ultimately, however, the best revenge against an annoying pest like Newsom is the one that is served ice cold:

Ron DeSantis speaking in California / Gavin Newsom speaking in Florida pic.twitter.com/Cv0bT39b5L

— Brendon Leslie (@BrendonLeslie) April 5, 2023

‘Nuff said.

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