California gubernatorial candidates Newsom, Dahle clash in only debate before Election Day

Gov. Gavin Newsom and his Republican challenger, state Sen. Brian Dahle, sparred Sunday over inflation, climate change, education, abortion and other issues in their only scheduled debate ahead of the Nov. 8 election.

The hour-long debate, aired on KQED radio and later broadcast on TV, did not feature strict time limits, creating a feisty back-and-forth.

Newsom, a Democrat, was asked to make the case for why voters should give him another term. He took credit for $9.5 billion in rebate checks going out to Californians now, efforts to fight climate change and his support for abortion rights.

Dahle, though, repeatedly tried to cast the governor as out-of-touch with ordinary Golden State residents struggling with inflation. He suggested Newsom has been spending too much time traveling out of state and laying the groundwork to run for U.S. president to replace Joe Biden in 2024.

What's on your ballot? Guide to California propositions for the 2022 election

“I want to start out by thanking the governor for taking time out … [from] going forward on his dream of being president of the United States and actually coming to California and having a debate,” said Dahle, whose state Senate district covers the sparsely populated far northeast corner of California.

Newsom, asked point blank if he would commit to serving a full four-year term as governor if reelected — which would take him out of the 2024 presidential campaign — said he would. He defended traveling out of California.

“I have barely been out of state. I was out of state for a few hours to take on [Dahle’s] party and his leader of his party, Donald Trump. … They're attacking women's right to choose, how they're banning books in an unprecedented manner, how they're banning speech and rewriting history.

This is a serious moment in American history, California history,” Newsom said. “There is demonization …  of the gay, lesbian, bisexual transgender community. I've had enough, so I'll proudly, happily stand up.”

While Newsom took credit for record budget surpluses and new spending on social problems, Dahle retorted: “He throws money at everything, but what are the results?”

Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos, co-hosts of KQED's “Political Breakdown,” moderated the debate.

The debate provided some much-needed visibility for Dahle's campaign. He's raised less than $1 million, which isn't enough to run statewide TV ads in the nation's most populous state, home to some of the country's most expensive media markets.

Newsom has not run any ads this year, either, because he hasn't had to. Republicans threw everything they had at Newsom during last year's recall election, only to have 61% of voters say the governor should keep his job. With all of his Republican rivals so thoroughly defeated, none chose to challenge him again this year except Dahle.

With more than $23 million in his campaign account, Newsom has been spending his money on ads in other states. He's paid for a TV ad in Florida and a newspaper ad in Texas. And he's paid for pro-abortion rights billboards in seven conservative states.

Climate change and drought

The candidates clashed repeatedly over climate change, gas taxes and drought.

“There's nobody that cares more about climate than myself,” said Dahle. “I'm a farmer. I'm in tune with the climate every day and it is changing, no doubt about it. But the policies that he's put forth, aren't actually doing anything to help the climate. He is driving up the cost of gasoline and electricity.”

But Newsom criticized Dahle for accepting campaign contributions from “big oil” and refusing to support specific pieces of legislation such as $2.7 billion for wildfire prevention, forest health and vegetation management and efforts to provide relief for gas inflation. He said while other states like Texas were “doubling down on stupid,” California was moving ahead creating jobs tied to renewable energy and zero-emission vehicles.

But Dahle said Newsom supports policies like banning the sale of gas-powered cars but has done little to stop exporting jobs to places like China, which are still building coal-fired power plants.

Dahle said Newsom’s “elite friends could afford Teslas at $70,000” but such vehicles were out of reach for most people.

Newsom, who has called a special legislative session in December to examine the high cost of gas in California, punched back, saying he was going after big oil for price gouging.

“They're ripping us off, they're ripping you off. They're ripping every one of us off and we're going after these companies and we're getting serious about the stress and pain Californians are faced with,” Newsom said.

Dahle supports a gas tax holiday, which he claimed would be the fastest way to help drive down inflation. He didn’t have a clear answer on how he would ensure the savings would go to consumers instead of companies, saying he would force companies to drop the price of gas by pushing down the taxes.

Newsom retorted that this would mean more money for big oil companies. He said he wants to move forward with a price-gouging penalty.

When questioned about his approach to the state’s drought and leaving it up to water districts to decide how to address it, Newsom said a one size fits all mandate doesn’t work when each region is different. He said his office has put out a plan to invest $8.8 billion in water conservation and new strategies to create more water.

He claimed there have been 11% reductions, but admitted the state has to do “a little bit more.”

Homelessness

On homelessness, moderators sought to hold Newsom’s feet to the fire, noting the number of people on the streets has continued to rise during his four years in office and asking him: “What do you say to voters who feel like this is not getting better?”

Newsom conceded that the situation was “an outrage” even as he sought to take credit for developing strategies and committing funding different programs such as Project Roomkey, Project Homekey and the CARE Courts.

“When I got here, there was no homeless strategy, no plan, no resources of any merit. Today there's $15.3 billion for a real strategy, a real plan and there's accountability for the first time,” he said.

“It's unconscionable what's happened in the streets and sidewalks,” the governor acknowledged, but he sought to place blame on local officials and said that he was introducing “accountability plans.”

“We’re not going to hand out money any longer” unless local governments can produce real results, he said. “Bottom line, the last two years with COVID and all of the headwinds,” he added, there was a “laissez-faire attitude in terms of addressing what was happening on the streets and sidewalks.”

Dahle has supported declaring a state of emergency and banning encampments near schools. He said that on his way to Sunday’s debate, he had to walk past people “defecating on the streets” and needles on the ground.

Dahle said the state needed to do more to get people off of drugs, fund county mental health services and drive down the cost of housing.

“This governor is really smooth at talking but in the end he delivers zero,” Dahle said.

Education

After Newsom touted new money for public school tutoring and other programs, moderators noted there are “still huge challenges teacher shortages, teacher burnout and families leaving public schools” and questioned why Newsom had put his children in private schools.

“What do you say to parents who wonder if you have faith in our public schools, given that personal decision?” they asked.

“I'm passionate about public education. I'm a product of public education,” the governor replied. “My kids are going to school right behind our house, a Waldorf School, which is about creativity and critical thinking and the kinds of things that we're advancing in our public education system. And the approach we've taken is to provide that same kind of choice and opportunity that my kids are afforded for every single one of our 6 million Californians going to public schools.”

Newsom also touted a new $1.9 billion program to create college savings accounts for 3.4 million incoming kindergarteners.

Dahle, who said his two oldest children had been educated in public schools, said he chose to have his youngest attend a private school. “I have my daughter in private education because you and I both know that a better education is a private education because our schools are failing,” he told Newsom.

“Our education system is failing our students, and parents know it, and they're leaving … there’s no doubt they are,” Dahle added.

Dahle said under Democratic leadership of the public school system, students weren’t getting the curriculum they need and instead were having “all kinds of other social stuff” shoved on them.

He claimed 50,000 students in the Los Angeles Unified School District didn’t show up first day of this year because of this. He also said test scores were plummeting and 70% of students “can’t read grade level.”

Newsom criticized Dahle for “identifying problems” but not offering solutions.

Abortion

Dahle reminded voters of his “pro-life” stance and expressed opposition to Proposition 1, which is also on the November ballot and would enshrine a right to abortion in California’s state constitution.

He said if elected, he would fund reproductive services but would seek to halt public spending for women traveling out of state for abortions. He said he would sign a budget he worked through with the legislature that includes abortion funding if “that’s what it takes to get the deal done.”

Newsom reiterated his support for abortion rights and reproductive care, criticizing Dahle for his stance.

"He does not support reproductive freedom, does not support reproductive choice regardless of rape, regardless of incest. He's contributed $20,000 to defeat Proposition 1," Newsom said. Later, the governor added that "my opponent believes that if some 10-year-old is raped by her father, she should be forced to bear her brother or sister. His position is extreme."

 Associated Press contributed to this report. 

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: California governor race: Newsom, Dahle clash in debate