Florida Governor Ron DeSantis loses again to Disney

DeSantis was the Republican governor of Florida thwarted by Disney once again.

The new board of directors DeSantis appointed to oversee the company’s theme parks in Orlando has discovered a new wrinkle in its plans. On Wednesday, the chairman of the board said:Eleven o’clock conventionBefore the board takes the position allowing Disney to set its own facility prices for its resorts through 2032. By then DeSantis, who is term-limited and cannot run for re-election in 2026, will be long gone.

It’s the latest development in the ever-growing culture war between DeSantis and Disney executives, who angered the governor last year after They publicly opposed his “Don’t Say Like Me” law., which prevents teachers from talking about LGBTQ+ issues or people. That battle escalated last month when it was revealed that Disney had pulled it off Quietly deny The new board of directors goes unnoticed by DeSantis’ allies, and persists as the governor attempts to clamp down on the company in retaliation.

DeSantis’ efforts Disney punished Being “awake” has become a political headache, as his potential opponents in the 2024 Republican presidential election, including former President Donald Trump and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, use it to launch the offensive. But at this point, DeSantis is likely too deep to hold back.

“Once you pick a fight with a bully, even though it’s starting to make you anxious, you probably need to end it,” said Robert Kahaley, chief strategist and pollster for The Trafalgar Group and a former Republican political advisor. He should be able to say, ‘I did everything I could do. I didn’t quit because it got hot. “

DeSantis has been trying to redeem himself in a PR battle that he has so far lost. Announced earlier this week new legislation Additional inspections are required at Disney’s theme parks and its monorail that connects hotels and theme parks. He also suggested that the new state assembly could turn land in and around Orlando’s theme parks into a public park, a competing theme park, or a state prison—and that the council should investigate Disney’s tax hike.

Meanwhile, Disney is planning its first Pride Month event at its California theme park, complete with themed entertainment and specialty menu items, harking back to the issue that initially infuriated the governor. It follows revelations last month planned by Disney’s lawyers Stripping the new paintingHe, appointed with DeSantis loyalists, removed most of his governing powers.

DeSantis’ efforts to strike back may be enough to appease Republicans, who are very vocal against so-called “woke corporations” that espouse progressive racial and social justice policies. Trafalgar polls found most Republicans say they would be less likely to do business with such companies and less likely to buy their products, Kahalee said, as evidenced by the latest report. Conservative boycott of Bud Light.

“They don’t want companies to be conservative,” Kahle said. They just want them to be non-partisan and stay out of politics. “

But DeSantis’ political opponents still see his feud with Disney as a weakness. He said, “I don’t think Ron DeSantis is conservative, based on his actions towards Disney.” Christie, who is expected to make a decision in the coming weeks about the candidacy, in an interview with Semaphore Tuesday. Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social network that DeSantis was “absolutely devastated by Disney” and suggested the company would be justified in leaving Florida.

Along with DeSantis’ decline in the polls, there has been speculation in GOP circles that he might have a I waited so long To officially announce the 2024 race, that’s until the Florida Republicans Trump endorsement Despite their ruler, continuing the eye-to-eye deal with Disney could stymie DeSantis’ presidential candidacy before it officially begins.

DeSantis has made his fight with Disney a pillar of his political identity

A key part of DeSantis’ bid for the presidency is his willingness to take on so-called “woke” companies, with Disney as a prime example. To be seen to have been defeated by such a company would dilute his candidacy. And it could boost other Republican candidates who are more experienced in using anti-wake-up rhetoric to their advantage, like right-wing activist Vivek Ramaswamy, who began campaigning in February and dubbed him “CEO of Anti-Woke, Inc.by The New Yorker.

The Governor’s battle with Disney is the subject of an entire chapter titled “The Magic Kingdom of Woke Corporatism” in DeSantis’ latest book, The courage to be free. He writes about how he got married in Disney World, something he says was really his wife’s idea, not knowing that he would later “go up against Disney in a political fight that would reverberate across the country.”

DeSantis describes companies like Disney as succumbing to the “awakened gender theory” pushed by the media by taking a stand on issues such as equal rights for LGBTQ Americans and Americans he believes should not participate in them. He writes about how he orchestrated a surprise session to repeal Disney’s tax status, which allowed it to develop and maintain its Orlando properties with relative independence — “the Florida equivalent of the heard ‘around the world’ picture.”

“Leaders must be prepared to stand up and fight back when big corporations make a mistake, as Disney did, by using their economic power to advance a political agenda,” DeSantis wrote.

That coup, of course, fell apart, with Disney turning a loss of status into a win for the company. DeSantis claimed on Tuesday that Disney tried to “circumvent… Will of the peopleIn undermining the new board of directors of the company’s tax district. His oversight board is said to be Unveil its plans soon to strip Disney of the powers it had recently granted itself.

But it’s not clear if Florida voters really want DeSantis to run against Disney. The governor may have won re-election by about 20 percentage points and ushered in the acceptance of a red wave in Florida in 2022. But Disney, the state’s largest employer, is still more popular than it is around the world. several Polls in the last year.

However, it falls in line with DeSantis’ attempts to position himself as a leader in culture war battles including those for Disney, but also on Restricting access to abortion And Relaxation of gun restrictions.

“If he’s going to emerge as a warrior on social issues, he can’t give up a fight on social issues,” Kahle said.