Backlash Over Florida Attack On Disney Has Begun
"If they pass the bill to repeal Disney’s self governance, I will never vote for another Republican again. I am a registered Republican," new email says
The Florida legislature, dominated by Republicans, struck at one of the state’s largest employers — and a decades-long icon of Florida culture — Thursday.
And the backlash by Disney has already begun.
Spurred by Republican Gov Ron DeSantis, Florida legislators passed a bill which would revoke the special government and tax benefits which Disney World has enjoyed for decades.
The right-wing lawmakers struck at Disney — which is a central pillar of Orlando, Fla.’s tourism economy — to punish the “Mouse House” because its executives spoke out recently against the state’s new “Don't Say Gay” law.
The measure approved Thursday would repeal the Reedy Creek Improvement District, in which Disney acts as its own government in the area around its Orlando theme parks while also receiving tax advantages.
The Disney corporation already reportedly is planning to pull Imagineers out of Florida and move them to the Disney offices in Burbank, Calif., instead — a decision made specifically in the wake of the proposed dissolution of the Reedy Creek Improvement Act.
The Reedy Creek arrangement has — for some 50 years — worked for both Disney Florida and the state. Disney’s parks contribute to Orlando’s significant tourism economy, it’s one of the largest private employers in the state, and the state doesn’t have to pay to manage large swaths of land.
Republicans, including DeSantis, were angered that Disney recently publicly opposed their “Don't Say Gay” law, in which discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity is prohibited in the Sunshine State's schools up through the third grade.
Some opponents of this repeal of Reedy Creek argue that doing so will amount to a big tax increase on Floridians, who will have to shoulder costs for law enforcement, first responders and other key maintenance within the Disney complex.
This attack on Disney is made ironic, given that the entertainment conglomerate donated $50,000 towards the election of DeSantis as governor four years ago. (DeSantis also is widely seen as a likely contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.)
State Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat based in an Orlando legislative district, released the text of an email her office received.
“Please pass on to your fellow Florida Representatives, that if they pass the bill to repeal Disney’s self governance, I will never vote for another Republican again. I am a registered Republican. The move is obviously retaliatory and completely unjustified,” it read.
This email is likely only the tip of a larger spear headed back at DeSantis and Florida Republicans as the fallout from Reedy Creek repeal becomes more widely understood.
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