Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s move against Walt Disney Corp. this week shows he’s willing to take the Republican Party’s culture war to new heights — with a frontal assault on one of his state’s biggest and most iconic employers — as he jockeys for position in a potentially crowded 2024 presidential field.
Republican governors like Texas’s Greg Abbott have laid down starkly conservative positions on abortion and transgender students that show their bona fides. Corporations have at times banded together in protest, often saying those policies discriminate against their workers, but Abbott’s moves generally haven’t been aimed at a single employer.
DeSantis took it further. A month-long feud between the governor and Disney escalated this week when the state legislature capitulated to DeSantis’s call to strip Burbank, California-based Disney of its special governing rights, a move that could challenge the company’s ability to operate its iconic theme park, which employs 70,000 people and brings in $780 million in tax revenue to the state DeSantis governs.
DeSantis criticized Disney after the company spoke out against a Florida law the governor signed last month that limits school instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation, a law critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Republican strategists and analysts said the fight with Disney allows DeSantis to gain influence outside of Florida by standing up to what conservatives call a “woke” corporation, at a time when Republicans increasingly emphasize culture-war issues and opposition to big businesses taking stands on political issues. But observers expressed surprise he was willing to take it this far.
“Mickey Mouse is extremely popular, and I’m sure this could backfire, but clearly the governor believes this is a risk worth taking and something that should be to his benefit,” said former Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo.
DeSantis’s spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said Thursday the motivation wasn’t politics but DeSantis’s long-held support for “a more level playing field” for all businesses in the state — and that it was Disney that inserted itself in the process.
“It is not ‘retaliatory’ to pass legislation that gets rid of carve-outs and promotes a fairer environment for all companies to do business,” Pushaw said in a statement. “It was unfortunate that Disney decided to wade into a political debate and attempt to strong-arm Florida into overturning a common-sense law.”
In March, Florida lawmakers passed a law supported by DeSantis that bans instruction of gender identity and sexual orientation in public schools for kindergarten through third grade classes and may allow restrictions for older students as well. After its adoption, Disney issued a statement saying that the legislation “should never have been passed and should never have been signed into law.” The company said it would work to get the law repealed or struck down in court. That angered DeSantis, who said Florida is “governed by the interests of the people of the state” and not by California corporate executives.
“If Disney wants to pick a fight, they chose the wrong guy,” DeSantis said in a campaign e-mail earlier this week.
On April 19, DeSantis asked the legislature to consider terminating the special privileges Disney enjoys through the existence of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a special district in Central Florida. Within hours, bills were filed in the Florida House and Senate to terminate all special districts enacted in Florida before 1968 without additional legislative action, which includes five other districts and Reedy Creek. The legislation moved quickly through both chambers, and was formally approved on Thursday. The measure would take effect as of June 1, 2023, barring any further legislative action.
“Some supporters are questioning going after one of the state’s biggest and most popular economic drivers,” said Susan MacManus, a professor emeritus of political science at the University of South Florida, Tampa.
Disney’s criticism of the Florida law sparked an outcry among some conservatives, who accused the company of capitulating to the “woke mob.” Some called for a boycott of Disney in response.
Abbott, the Republican governor seeking reelection this year, has emphasized culture war issues and securing the southern U.S. border. The governor took a shot at environmental and social governance initiatives last year, by banning state investments in businesses that cut ties with oil and gas companies.
Governors traditionally have been reluctant to take action against large companies that are major economic drivers in their states — especially as quickly as DeSantis and GOP lawmakers did and over criticism of a piece of legislation, said Aubrey Jewett, who teaches politics and state government at the University of Central Florida.
The Reedy Creek district, where the Disney resorts are based, has its own building codes and approval process for new projects, meaning that Disney often doesn’t have to wade through bureaucratic channels spanning multiple governments to get things done.
Disney hasn’t responded yet to the passing of the new legislation. The company didn’t immediately respond to an e-mailed request on Friday for further comment.
DeSantis’s move is even more surprising given the strong bond between Disney and Florida. The company is now among the state’s largest employers. Its businesses there include four theme parks and more than 29,000 hotel rooms. Its flagship park, the Magic Kingdom, welcomed nearly 21 million guests in 2019.
DeSantis is running for reelection this year, but he trails only former President Donald Trump in most polls forecasting a potential GOP presidential primary field in 2024. During the Conservative Political Action Conference earlier this year, DeSantis was the overwhelming choice for the presidential Republican nomination if Trump doesn’t run again.
Stripping Disney of its self-governance privileges could cause a backlash for DeSantis if it causes any economic harm to Disney and has unintended consequences, Jewett said. There are questions about whether taxpayers would be on the hook for paying back $1 billion in municipal bonds with the dissolution of Reedy Creek Improvement District that encompasses the Disney resort, for example.
A YouGov survey conducted earlier this month found that Americans were mostly split when it came to opinions about Disney’s political ideology and activism, with 32% of respondents saying the company was “too liberal” compared with 9% who thought it was “too conservative.” While 19% of respondents thought the company had struck the right tone, 27% weren’t sure. When asked if Disney’s Chief Executive Officer Robert Chapek had made the correct decision to criticize the legislation, 39% said he made the right decision, while 35% of respondents saying he was in the wrong.
The survey of 1,000 U.S. adults was conducted April 5 to April 8 and has a margin of error of 3.6%.
Trump showed that being at the center of political firestorms draws attention and news coverage, and DeSantis is getting attention that other governors and potential 2024 GOP presidential candidates aren’t, said Brad Coker, managing director at Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy in Florida.
“From the old adage of, ‘There’s no bad press,’ he’s getting press that other governors aren’t getting, that frankly other Republican contenders aren’t getting,” Coker said. “Who are people talking about? Ron DeSantis.”
