By Trying to ‘Move On,’ DeSantis Admits His Fight with Disney Was a Political Stunt All Along

August 15, 2023

It was never a principled fight against special privileges granted to a private company.

by Eric Boehm Reason.com

The fact that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is now trying to back away from his fight with the Walt Disney Company should confirm at least one thing about the whole ugly mess.

It was never a principled fight against special privileges granted to a private company. It was a political stunt meant to raise DeSantis’ profile on the national stage.

That mission having been accomplished—and with the prospects of a legal battle against Disney looming—DeSantis told CNBC on Monday that he has “moved on” from the issue. He also encouraged Disney to “drop the lawsuit” that it filed in April against his administration.

In that lawsuit, Disney claimed that DeSantis led a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company’s then-CEO, Bob Chapek, had spoken out against DeSantis’ decision to sign a bill limiting the discussion of gender and sexuality in grade school classrooms.