For weeks and weeks, many Republicans have begged for a debate among Republicans running for Florida governor. On Thursday night, it finally happened.
Sort of.
Welcome to the Republican undercard debate for governor, otherwise known as The Future of Florida live debate on YouTube. After no broadcast or cable network agreed to air it, conservative podcast host Patrick Bet-David announced Monday he’d host Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, investor James Fishback and former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner.
The GOP front-runner, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, skipped it.
Boosted by an early endorsement from President Donald Trump, Donalds is way ahead of the primary pack, outraising his Republican opponents by more than 10-1 and outpolling the next closest contender, Fishback, by 30 to 50 percentage points.
None of Thursday’s participants met the GOP threshold last month to qualify for a debate with Donalds at the party’s annual summit. Donalds dismissed requests by his GOP rivals to debate by saying there were no “participation trophies” in politics and that he’d only legitimize their otherwise flagging campaigns if he agreed.
His opponents didn’t appreciate that characterization. Collins, a military veteran who lost his leg after getting wounded in Afghanistan, responded by pulling off his prosthetic leg during a campaign stop. “This is my participation trophy.”
Thursday’s debate promised more pre-holiday performative fireworks.
About 7,000 were streaming on YouTube when, about halfway through the two-hour debate, Collins and Fishback exchanged sharp words. Earlier this week, Collins sued Fishback and the state’s Division of Elections, claiming the 31-year-old didn’t qualify to run for governor because he hadn’t lived in Florida long enough under state law.
Expect continued hostilities through the Aug. 18 primary. And then, probably, the guy not on the stage, Donalds, will go on to face the Democratic nominee, who will likely be former U.S. Rep. David Jolly.
Expect a debate between those two.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Here are some of Thursday’s highlights.
Fishback takes on Collins
Fishback and Collins talked about how the state should regulate AI data centers. Fishback, who says he will remove every data center in Florida, asked Collins if he’d go that far.
Collins demurred, saying banning data centers should be left up to local governments.
“How do you think the people in the cities and counties are going to feel about the state government coming in and taking control?” Collins said.
When Fishback interrupted, Collins yelled: “Let me finish talking, man!”
People “want to have a say in their local life,” Collins told Fishback. “Brother, you know this. You grew up in a small town, just like I did.”
Fishback then steered the conversation to the lawsuit.
“Where was it, where did I grow up?”
“I think you grew up …” Collins said.
“Where did I grow up, Jay?” Fishback said. “Where’d I grow up? Here in Florida.”
“You called Madison home, right?” Collins said. (Fishback actually grew up in Davie.)
“I grew up here in Florida, right?” Fishback said.
Collins nodded.
“All right, case closed. Drop the lawsuit.” Fishback said.
Collins’ lawsuit alleges that Fishback hasn’t lived in Florida for seven consecutive years before he would take office. His campaign provided exhibits showing Fishback’s Washington, D.C., condo and voting history. Whether or not someone grew up in Florida is moot because it’s only the last seven years that state law recognizes as necessary to qualify, but Fishback was on a tear.
“We’re not going to discuss that,” Collins said, referring to the lawsuit.
“Why don’t we discuss the fact that a Montana man hired a California lawyer to sue Gov. DeSantis’ administration to remove a fourth-generation Floridian from our ballot,” Fishback said. “You’re trying to steal the election with Byron Donalds.”
Collins persisted, suggesting Fishback was playing to his large digital audience.
“The reality is this isn’t about large clicks. It’s about the games you play …”
“You literally said just now that I’m from Florida and now you’re suing me because I’m not from Florida,” Fishback said. “Stop the lawsuit. Yes or no.”
It went on like this for a bit. Finally, Renner, who had been silent during this exchange, was invited to speak by the moderator, Bet-David.
“If we were at a dining room table, you know where the kids’ table is right now, with all that back and forth,” Renner said.
Then Renner razzed Collins a bit for not saying that the state should be able to regulate data centers. He and Fishback support state intervention of AI data centers. Collins maintained that was a local decision.
Collins later implied that Renner and Fishback had been collaborating to make him look bad.
“They’re not serious about running against Byron Donalds,” Collins said, talking to the crowd. “They’re worried about me. And guys, here’s the problem. No one’s buying your game.”
Donalds bashing
The three did agree that Donalds shouldn’t win the nomination. They repeated well-rehearsed talking points they’ve made for months on the campaign trail.
“You go around the counties, people say the same exact thing,” Collins said. “They don’t want Byron. They love President Trump. They’re not enamored with Byron Donalds. They meet him, they see him, they hear him, and they like him less, moment by moment by moment.”
“Every voter in this audience, everyone watching, everyone in the state deserves a debate, and it’s disrespectful of Byron Donalds not to come on the stage and make his case as to why he is better able to lead the state for the next eight years,” said Renner, who later volunteered that he probably won’t campaign for Donalds if that’s who wins the nomination.
Fishback disputed the notion that Donalds is the front-runner.
“You’re referring to polls, the same polls have been wrong time and time again,” Fishback said to Bet-David. “They were wrong about President Trump. The same exact pollsters that now say that Byron Donalds is ahead, even though you can’t find somebody if your life depended on it who loves Byron Donald.”
Neither Collins nor Renner criticized Fishback for his provocative attacks on Donalds that focused on his race.
On this topic, tonight, all three were unified.
Affordability conundrum
How do Republicans make a fuss about how expensive things are when they’ve been running Florida government for the past 30 years?
Renner used the phrase “we’ve a victim of our own success” when referencing home prices. Homes are more expensive because of supply and demand. More people are moving to Florida from states like California and New York, he reasoned.
Insurance prices are and will come down, but Floridians need to wait, Renner explained. He passed tort reform as House Speaker in 2022, but he saidmany lawyers filed lawsuits before the law went into effect. So those cases are still working their way through the system and helping inflate insurance rates.
Collins also helped pass tort reform. He, too, urged patience.
“Guys, what we did with tort made a huge difference. The No. 1 thing you can’t do is fall back,” he said.
Rates would skyrocket if lawmakers changed strategy, Collins said.
Fishback blamed fraudulent claims by migrants living in the country illegally for rising insurance costs.
“We are going to throw the book at anyone and everyone, especially illegal aliens, who can make insurance fraud, prosecute them, invite the insurance companies back in,” Fishback said. “They’ll make a good profit, and we can bring down the premiums and save money for free.”
A New York state of mind
Even though it’s thousands of miles away, New York and its mayor, Zohran Mamdani, were referred to by Republicans as an existential threat.
“There is a movement in our country that calls themselves Democratic Socialists, but let’s call them what they really are,“ Fishback said. ”They are communists. … We will never forget what communism really is. Our neighbors in Cuba know that, and we must fight the wickedness of communism, no matter what the Democrats call it today.”
About 1,200 watched on livestream, according to YouTube. But many more will see reports about it on social media.
“I showed up, answered every question, and will continue taking my message directly to voters,” Collins said on X after the debate.
Fishback claimed on X, over a large DONATE button, “We won the debate, now I need you in this fight.”
“We just finished the debate, and I made my case to the people of Florida: I’m the only candidate ready to defeat Byron Donalds on Aug. 18,” Renner said on X above a donation page link.
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