Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday teased future, unspecified action against Disney after the entertainment giant appeared to thwart his attempts at a takeover of its special governing powers.
“There’s a lot of little back-and-forths going on now with the state taking control, but rest assured, you know, you ain’t seen nothing yet,” the Republican governor told a crowd in Smyrna, Georgia. “There’s more to come in that regard.”
The comments come a day after DeSantis allies on the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board – the body that oversees the land in and around Disney’s Orlando-area theme parks – unveiled that the company had quietly reached an agreement with the outgoing board that turned over most of its governing powers to Disney. The new board hired outside legal counsel as it weighs its options to claw back its authority.
Yet, DeSantis on Thursday continued to claim victory over Disney in a dispute that first began last year when the company vowed to help overturn a new law that limited the instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. DeSantis responded by vowing to strip the company of its longstanding power to tax, borrow and build infrastructure projects in Central Florida in an area known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
“I don’t know that it’s the appropriate use of shareholder resources to be shilling for gender ideology in kindergarten, but nevertheless, that’s what they decided to do,” DeSantis said.
In February, DeSantis signed a bill that removed all the Disney-aligned board members and gave him the power to name their replacements. The new board took over in early March – a month after the outgoing board had already moved to turn over oversight of development to Disney and gave the company veto authority over any public project in the district.
“They…
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