News. In the right corner: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. In the left corner: California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Back in September, Newsom bragged that he “baited” DeSantis into the Nov. 30 event. Many people seemed to think DeSantis would be overmatched. Newsom, after all, is a peerless deceiver. Horror film director John Carpenter in Prince of Darkness conceived the son of Satan as a swirling, sentient green liquid. If that ooze were to coalesce into human form, I imagine it would bear a striking resemblance to California’s governor.

But DeSantis defied expectations, and not only held his own, but landed haymakers. He even brought a map. It showed that San Francisco, where Newsom previously served as mayor, is a minefield of human excrement. DeSantis also noted how the city underwent a remarkable temporary beautification ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, when Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping were coming to town.

In a snap, homeless encampments vanished. Derelict plazas were resurrected with clean and cozy amenities. Broken sidewalks were made new. Open-air fentanyl markets disappeared. Buildings covered in grime and graffiti were scrubbed. Then the summit ended, and the drug dealers and “unhoused” returned. “They cleared what needed to be cleared and cleared what was going to be seen,” a local man complained to NBC News. “Yeah, they cleaned up the people, they cleaned up the street to make the city look good, and look impressive for the foreigners, for the politicians,” another told CBS.