DeSantis’ Attack on Disney Recalls a ’90s Culture War That the Right Lost (Guest Column)

party where loyalty to the former president is a requirement.But DeSantis' decision to punish Disney World, one of the world's most popular tourist destinations and one of Florida's biggest private employers, took his fighter mentality to a new level. In retribution for Disney's criticism of a new state law condemned by critics as “Don't Say Gay,” DeSantis signed legislation on Friday stripping the theme park of a decades-old special agreement that allowed it to govern itself.To critics, including some in his own party, such a raw exercise of power suggests DeSantis is operating with a sense of invincibility that could come back to haunt him.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida Gov.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterFlorida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill on Friday to abolish Disney’s self-governing district in Orlando, punishing the company for its opposition to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law.The bill would dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which covers nearly 40 square miles of Orange and Osceola counties and encompasses the Disney theme parks and resorts.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterThe Florida Legislature voted Thursday to terminate Disney’s self-governing district in Orlando, in a move intended to retaliate for the company’s opposition to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.The House of Representatives approved the bill on a vote of 70-38, a day after the measure passed through the state Senate. The bill is expected to be signed by Gov.

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is one-third of the way to punishing Disney for opposing his anti-LGBTQ legislation, the widely-discredited, potentially unconstitutional “Don’t Say Gay” law, but some Florida taxpayers are in for a reportedly multi-billion dollar shock if he signs on the dotted line.On Wednesday the Florida Senate, succumbing to DeSantis’ worst instincts, passed a bill that would eliminate a 1967 law that essentially created a 39-square mile area, now almost entirely occupied by Disney World, that enables it to act as its own government – including providing all the services, like power, water, sewers, police, and fire, that local governments do.Called the Reedy Creek Improvement District, DeSantis now wants to essentially void that law. The House is expected to pass that bill Thursday, putting DeSantis’ temper tantrum at his feet.But according to the Orange County Tax Collector, Orange County would be on the hook for “all debt and obligations with no extra funds,” meaning “Orange County would take on $163 million [in debt obligations] per year.”It gets worse for Florida taxpayers.“If Reedy Creek is dissolved, Orange and Osceola counties would assume responsibilities handled by the district like sewer and road maintenance, meaning taxpayers in those counties would pay, The Miami Herald reports.

Does it ever feel like those of us in and around Hollywood are at war with the world?

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Florida Senate on Wednesday passed a bill to repeal a law allowing Walt Disney World to operate a private government over its properties in the state, escalating a feud with the entertainment giant over its opposition to what critics call the “ Don’t Say Gay ” law.The proposal could have huge tax implications for Disney, whose series of theme parks have over the decades transformed Orlando into one of the world's most popular tourist destinations.

Governor Ron DeSantis after his Dept. of Health issued a statement labeled “guidance” Wednesday in opposition to the U.S.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis escalated his attack on The Walt Disney Co. on Tuesday, as he called on the state legislature to end a self-governing special district covering Walt Disney World.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterFlorida Gov. Ron DeSantis raised the stakes in his fight with Disney on Tuesday, announcing that he would call on the Legislature to terminate the company’s self-governing district in Orlando.DeSantis has been fighting with Disney over the company’s opposition to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which forbids classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through third grade.

rejecting 54 math books, some of them due to what the division said were references to critical race theory.Here’s how Colbert ripped into the state department’s decision, which was supported by Gov. Ron DeSantis: “So why the war against arithmetic? Well, the Florida education department explained that reasons for rejecting textbooks included references to critical race theory, which the Florida legislature says includes theories that distort historical events.

Florida’s recent, so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.Roy P. Disney — the great-nephew of Walt Disney and the co-founder of Walt Disney Co — disclosed recently in a statement that his child, Charlee, is trans.Roy revealed the news while also pledging $500,000 to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) alongside his wife, Sheri.Charlee, 30, is a high school biology and science teacher who uses they/them pronouns and came out to their family four years ago.“Equality matters deeply to us, especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community,” Roy wrote in a statement.Roy’s sister, Abigail Disney, tweeted her praise and adoration for her brother’s gesture. “Today I am busting with pride at what my brother and his wife have done.

spoke out against Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay Bill,” which was signed into law last month.Appearing Sunday on CNN’s “Reliable Sources,” Disney described the anti-Disney campaign as a “coordinated, strategic plan.”“Disney seems like the biggest target because it’s so woven into families,” she told host Brian Stelter. “And so if you can create this idea that somebody’s in there trying to indoctrinate your child, my goodness, the paranoid imagination can run circles with that.”Florida HB 1557 – promoted under the name “Parental Rights in Education” bill but widely known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill – bans primary school teachers from instructing on sexual orientation and gender identity and bans teachers of all grade levels from discussing these topics when appropriate.

The Walt Disney Co. initially took heat for not taking a public position on Florida’s so-called “don’t say gay” bill — and now they are under fire for doing just that.

watch here or at the bottom. “The antitrust division at Justice needs to begin the process of considering which American companies need to be broken up once and for all, for competition sake and ultimately for the good of consumers who pay the bills.”Ingraham also warned that businesses like Apple and Disney should learn to stay in their lane instead of diving “into contentious political issues about which they know nothing” because they risk alienating part of their consumer base.“You guys have products and services that 74 million Trump voters — they don’t need to purchase if they don’t want to,” she continued.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested that The Walt Disney Co. should be stripped of its “special privileges” in the state following its opposition to the new Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed by detractors as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Caitlyn Jenner, the transgender athlete, reality star and California gubernatorial candidate, has signed on to Fox News Media as a contributor.

Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is the leading defendant in a massive 80-page lawsuit by Equality Florida against the “Don’t Say Gay” law he signed this week. Roberta Kaplan, one of the nation’s top civil rights lawyers, who successfully argued the Supreme Court case that effectively overturned the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA),  is the lead attorney on the case.“Florida House Bill 1557 (widely known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law) is an unlawful attempt to stigmatize, silence, and erase LGBTQ people in Florida’s public schools.

Hillbilly Elegy, and Josh Mandel, the former Ohio state treasurer and two-time U.S. Senate candidate who is back for his third run,  blames Democrats and President Biden for NCAA rules that allow transgender females to compete on women’s sports teams in her most recent campaign commercial, reports The Hill..Given Vance and Mandel’s previous appeals to social conservatives by attacking the transgender and two-spirit communities, Timken, the third of three frontrunners in the GOP field — who heretofore was viewed as the more “establishment” figure — is hoping the ad gains traction and allows her to consolidate Republican primary voters behind her campaign.Thomas, who previously competed for UPenn’s men’s swimming team during her first three years in college, has particularly become a favorite target of conservatives, who balk at the idea that she was allowed to compete in women’s swimming after having received hormone therapy for two-and-a-half years (under NCAA rules, trans women are able to compete after finishing a year of hormone therapy).