At long last, Ron DeSantis was finally confronted on his bully tactics.

The Florida governor, for the most part, has taken little heat from his Republican presidential rivals over the culture wars he has waged. Occasionally, Donald Trump will remind voters with a well-timed “DeSanctimonious” put down. 

But during his Nov. 30 debate against California Gov. Gavin Newsom, DeSantis got what many would say he has long deserved — a very public admonishment. 

“I don’t like the way you demean people,” Newsom said, pointing his finger at DeSantis. “I don’t like the way you demean the LGBTQ community. I don’t like the way you demean and humiliate people you disagree with, Ron.”

Newsom said it was former President Ronald Reagan, a Republican icon and former California governor, who spoke out against the original “Don’t Say Gay” bill — the Briggs Initiative, which sought to ban gays and lesbians from working in public schools.

“Reagan had the courage to say you can’t catch gay like you can the measles,” Newsom said. 

Newsom also condemned DeSantis’ efforts to ban books that contain queer content. 

“What you’re doing is using education as a sword for your cultural purge,” Newsom said. 

Watching from home, former Florida Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith cheered Newsom’s performance. 

“To finally see Ron aggressively confronted was everything,” Smith said.