x
Breaking News
More () »

Ron DeSantis and Andrew Gillum clash during Florida governor debate on CNN

The candidates, who met for the first time, debated before a national audience on the CNN broadcast the day before Floridians begin early voting and 16 days before the Nov. 6 election for governor.

Ana Ceballos, USA TODAY NETOWRK - Florida

Republican Ron DeSantis and Democrat Andrew Gillum spent much of their hourlong gubernatorial debate Sunday taking jabs at each other, with DeSantis calling his opponent a failed Tallahassee mayor and Gillum labeling his GOP challenger a "stooge" for President Donald Trump.

The two, who met for the first time, debated before a national audience on the CNN broadcast the day before Floridians begin early voting and 16 days before the Nov. 6 election for governor.

In one of the sharpest exchanges, DeSantis called Gillum a “corrupt” politician, implying the mayor took free Broadway tickets during a trip to New York. The trip has haunted Gillum, who has said he is not a target of an ongoing federal public corruption investigation.

RELATED STORIES:

VERIFY: Did crime increase in Tallahassee under Gillum's leadership?

VERIFY: Ron DeSantis and the Trump influence

VERIFY: Did Andrew Gillum fail the city of Tallahassee after Hurricane Hermine?

Within the first couple of minutes of the debate, DeSantis came out swinging hard on this topic—something Floridians had yet to see him do other than on television ads.

“Look, Andrew is a failed mayor. He’s presided over a crime-ridden city. He is involved in corruption. He is not the guy to lead our state,” DeSantis said. “I’ve worn the uniform, I’ve protected our communities and I will protect Florida’s future.”

Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis speaks during a CNN debate against opponent Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum, Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (Photo by Chris O'Meara-Pool/Getty Images)

The retired Navy JAG officer then pointed to the city’s crime rate to argue why Gillum “failed the city of Tallahassee,” a jab the mayor quickly rebutted.

“I preside right now over a city that is experiencing a 5-year-low on crime rate and we are on track on having a 20-year-low crime rate. Those are the facts,” Gillum said.

But the most contentious exchange between the two had to do with an FBI investigation into city corruption in the city—one that Gillum has stressed to the public he is not the focus of.

“I am not under an FBI investigation and neither is my city government,” Gillum said. “What we have done is we welcome them in and if someone has done something wrong, they will be held fully accountable for their actions.”

As DeSantis questioned Gillum’s association with lobbyist Adam Corey, who is a focus in the federal probe, and their trip to New York, the Democrat told the GOP candidate to “check himself” for suggesting that having friends of certain professions made him “less than ethical.”

"We all have friends that sometimes let us down," Gillum said when asked about the case by CNN's Jake Tapper. "I am not under FBI investigation, and neither is my city government.”

DeSantis’ inquiry over receipts of those trips soon turned to Gillum questioning the congressman on whether he would release detailed receipts of his travel during his nearly six years in Congress, which DeSantis has refused to do.

“He won’t allow us to see those receipts,” “Will you also release the $145,000 in travel receipts that you took public money to go to New York City? Release them.”

“It’s all there,” DeSantis said.

Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum speaks during a CNN debate against Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis, Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, Pool)

But it’s not. The USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida repeatedly asked the congressman for a more than a month to release itemized receipts of his more than $145,000 in trips using public funds, but he declined to do so. Some of those trips included trips to New York to appear on Fox News shows.

Major policy issues — including the environment, immigration, health care, criminal justice and the economy — were also covered during the debate. For the first time in months, DeSantis gave a wider glimpse into his policy platform, something Democrats have used to criticize him.

“Healthcare is the major issue on Floridians minds,” Gillum said. “We deserve to hear from the congressman exactly what his healthcare proposal is. He’s been promising one for months. Nothing has come from his office.”

DeSantis said Medicare for all, which Gillum is proposing, would "take away employer-provided coverage."

DeSantis later faced questions about comments he made during an interview after the primary, urging Floridians not to "monkey this up" by electing Gillum, who is black. The remark was criticized as racist. He was also asked about a donor who used the N-word to describe President Barack Obama and was asked why he didn't return the money.

“Because he made a mistake,” DeSantis said. “He apologized.”

DeSantis said he would "be a governor for all Floridians," and said he has a history of not considering race when serving in the military and as a prosecutor early in his career.

Gillum argued DeSantis knew exactly what he was doing when he made the “monkey this up” comment.

“He’s only continued in the course of his campaign to draw all the attention he can to the color of my skin. And the truth is, you know, I’m black. I’ve been black all of my life,” Gillum said. “As far as I know, I will die black.”

The relationship with Trump, who has played a huge role in the political rise of DeSantis, was also a point of contention.

Gillum, who has called to impeach Trump, took shots at the president.

"Donald Trump is weak, and he performs as all weak people do. They become bullies," Gillum said. He said DeSantis cares too much about what Trump thinks. "He's his stooge," Gillum said.

But Gillum said he would work with Trump if he's elected governor.

“This is a democracy. We can dissent. We can disagree. If you want to look for an example, you can look at how Gov. Rick Scott and I worked together in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael,” Gillum said.

Credit: Pool
TAMPA, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 21: Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis, left, speaks about his Democratic opponent Andrew Gillum during a CNN debate, Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018, in Tampa, Fla. (Photo by Chris O'Meara-Pool/Getty Images)

DeSantis argued Florida’s relationship with the federal government would suffer if Gillum is elected.

“President Trump has so many irons in the fire. You have to make the case that is going to get quick action, and I am going to be able to do that,” DeSantis said.

Trump tweeted minutes after the debate that "DeSantis had a great debate victory tonight against Andrew Gillum, a mayor who presides over one of the worst run, and most corrupt, cities in Florida. Ron will build on the great job done by Governor Rick Scott. Gillum will make Florida the next Venezuela!"

At least six polls have so far suggested the race is a toss-up yet have shown Gillum leading DeSantis within the polls' margin of error.

Hours before the debate, CNN released a poll showing Gillum with a double digit advantage over DeSantis, prompting the network’s own polling director to say the findings “could be an outlier” and DeSantis’ camp accusing CNN of “working hard to craft far left polling data.”

Months of campaigning in the general election has cemented the two candidates in their own partisan silos. Gillum has embraced a progressive message, promising to enact gun control legislation, to expand Medicaid and to raise the minimum wage to $15.

DeSantis has cultivated a fiscal conservative persona on the campaign trail with a keen interest in protecting Republican Gov. Rick Scott’s “economic momentum.” DeSantis also has promoted an environmental agenda that he argues will help eliminate toxic algae blooms produced by Lake Okeechobee discharges and red tide outbreaks along the Florida coasts.

Even though the election is weeks away, Floridians have already been voting by mail. As of Oct. 18, 303,645 Democrats, 346,356 Republicans and 144,659 voters with no party affiliations have cast their votes.

Before You Leave, Check This Out