Becerra, Steyer on hot seat in CNN CA governor debate — candidates ranked |
US News Metro Long Island Politics
Sports NFL MLB Olympics NBA NHL College Football College Basketball WNBA
Business Personal Finance
Entertainment TV Movies Music Celebrities Awards Theater
Lifestyle Weird But True Sex & Relationships Viral Trends Human Interest Parenting Fashion & Beauty Food & Drink Travel
Health Wellness Fitness Health Care Medicine Men’s Health Women’s Health Mental Health Nutrition
Science Space Environment Wildlife Archaeology
Today’s Paper Covers Columnists Horoscopes Crosswords & Games Sports Odds Podcasts Careers
Email Newsletters Official Store Home Delivery Tips
Switch between CA and NY editions here.
Becerra, Steyer on hot seat in CNN CA governor debate — candidates ranked
Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer, the two Democrats who emerged as narrow frontrunners in the race for California governor after the implosion of Eric Swalwell, were on the defensive in Tuesday night’s CNN debate.
Rivals — Republican and Democrat — attacked Becerra and Steyer throughout the evening, as they jockey for position in the “jungle primary.” Only two candidates will advance, regardless of party.
The contest was fairly even, until Katie Porter — who had started strong — scored a spectacular own goal by bringing up her own temperament as an issue.
The debate then pivoted to Chad Bianco, who took the spotlight for several minutes.
Steve Hilton took a whimsical approach, smiling as he delivered policy zingers. Antonio Villaraigosa looked desperate, as he flailed at the frontrunners. And Matt Mahan tried to triangulate between both sides as the moderate in the race.
Notably, Hilton and Bianco avoided attacking each other, and were even friendly onstage. They seem to realize that each of them only has a chance if the other also qualifies; they have to finish first and second.
Whether that happens might be a shrinking possibility, if Democrats can settle on one strong candidate. Viewed as a contest between Becerra and Steyer, Becerra won. But the field is still spread too thinly among Democrats to make any outcome certain, and the two Republicans are still in with a shot to win.
Xavier Becerra: A- The former Secretary of Health and Human Services defended the state’s high gas tax,........