Gavin Newsom spent years telling Americans that California works.
Now his own father-in-law lives in Florida – and Ron DeSantis just told the world what he said.
DeSantis went on Sean Hannity's podcast this week and reminded every Democrat in the country why this story still stings.
The Story DeSantis Told That Made Newsom's Team Furious
Appearing on Hang Out with Sean Hannity, DeSantis recounted running into Kenneth Siebel – Newsom's Republican father-in-law – at a Florida fundraiser.
Siebel walked up and delivered the kind of endorsement no politician expects.
According to DeSantis, Siebel told him Florida was much better governed, safer, with a better budget and lower taxes – and that he'd never been happier in the state.
Then came the kicker.
"Oh, by the way, I'm Gavin Newsom's father-in-law."
DeSantis described the room's reaction in one sentence: "That whole place erupted."
Siebel is no random Florida transplant – he's an 82-year-old investment banker, a registered Republican, and one of the most well-connected figures in Northern California business circles.
He purchased a $3.3 million Naples home in 2020 and registered to vote in Florida shortly after.
Newsom's office responded by calling DeSantis "Meatball Ron" and insisting he'd been recycling the anecdote for years.
That response tells you everything about how much it bothers them.
Here's how much it bothered them in real time: DeSantis told Hannity that the moment he dropped the father-in-law line during their 2023 Fox News debate, Newsom's staff ran onto the set and pulled him off the stage.
The debate was supposed to run until 10:30. It was 10:36. Newsom had just told Hannity he was "having such a good time" and wanted to keep going.
Then DeSantis invoked the father-in-law.
"They were hissing me when I was going back there," DeSantis said of Newsom's team during the commercial break.
California Is Losing Everyone and Newsom Wants to Bring That Model to Washington
This isn't just a funny anecdote.
It's a punchline with 254,000 data points behind it.
That's how many more people left California for other states than moved in during 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data – the largest net domestic migration loss in the nation.
U-Haul ranked California the number one state for outbound moves for the sixth consecutive year.
Florida received more new out-of-state residents than any other state in America that same year – 574,000 new arrivals.
Hannity rattled off California's numbers during the interview: highest income taxes, highest gas taxes, a budget Newsom still can't balance.
California is staring down a projected $18 billion deficit for 2026-27, according to the state's Legislative Analyst Office – and that's the optimistic number.
The LAO's own projections warn the structural deficit could hit $35 billion annually by 2027-28.
This is Newsom's eighth budget – and in seven signed budgets, revenues grew 60 percent while spending jumped 72 percent.
The state's population barely moved.
DeSantis keeps coming back to this story because the underlying reality hasn't changed.
681,000 Californians packed up in 2024 and moved to another state – the most exits of any state in the country.
Republicans make up the largest share of those departures, according to Manhattan Institute research tracking IRS migration data, and high earners follow right behind them – heading for Florida, Texas, and Nevada where there's no state income tax.
Newsom is planning to run for president on the explicit premise that California's model works.
The California tax structure, the California spending priorities, the California regulatory regime – he wants all of it in Washington.
But the people funding that model are leaving faster than Newsom can replace them with spending programs.
According to IRS migration data tracked by the Manhattan Institute, California has lost more high-income taxpayers to other states than any other state in the country – and most of them aren't coming back.
His own father-in-law moved to Florida, told DeSantis he'd never been happier, and the room erupted.
The story isn't recycled material.
It's fresh every time Newsom files another deficit budget.
Sources:
- Zain Khan, "Florida gov. Ron DeSantis trolls Gavin Newsom — with spicy anecdote about his father-in-law," Page Six, March 23, 2026.
- Alex Griffing, "He Got the Hook: DeSantis Reveals How His Fox News Debate With Newsom Abruptly Ended," Mediaite, March 23, 2026.
- "The 2026-27 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget," California Legislative Analyst Office, January 10, 2026.
- "Big deficits loom for California — will the state raise revenue, cut programs or both?" Times of San Diego, January 5, 2026.
- "Florida had the most people moving in, 2nd most moving out in 2024: Census data," WFLA, January 26, 2026.
- "The states people have moved to – and left – the most: Census data," The Hill, January 26, 2026.