It started with a seemingly inconsequential corporate statement. Gov. Ron DeSantis last year signed a proposal critics have labeled the “Don’t Say Gay” policy, and Disney, a powerhouse in the Sunshine State, eventually criticized the anti-LGBTQ measure.
In a normal political environment, the governor might’ve defended his position and expressed his disagreement with Florida’s largest private employer, at which point the relevant players would’ve moved on. But in DeSantis Land, there’s nothing especially normal about politics: The far-right governor responded to the modest criticism by picking an ugly and prolonged fight with Disney, in part to punish the corporate giant for daring to disagree with him in public, and in part to send a signal to others that he’d retaliate against anyone who challenges his positions.
Disney CEO Bob Iger spoke at an annual shareholder meeting earlier this month, noting that the dispute began by the company exercising its right to take a public position on a matter of public debate.
“The governor got very angry about the position Disney took and seems like he’s decided to retaliate against us, including the naming of a new board to oversee the property and the business,” the executive said. “In effect, to seek to punish a company for its exercise of a constitutional right. And that just seems really wrong to me.”
That was three weeks ago. Yesterday, as NBC News reported, Disney took those same concerns to a federal courthouse.
The Walt Disney Co. on Wednesday filed a lawsuit in federal court against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other officials alleging a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company publicly opposed a state law that critics call “Don’t Say Gay.”
By any fair measure, the litigation was largely unavoidable. The GOP governor, enraged by a relatively brief and inconsequential corporate press release issued 13 months ago, continued to take retaliatory steps against Disney…
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