Ron DeSantis will 'soon face a reckoning' for his 'repulsive' anti-Disney antics: journalist

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ anti-Disney antics have been drawing criticism from both the left and the right, including Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan — a moderate conservative and non-MAGA Republican who believes that DeSantis is making a mistake by picking a “crazy fight” with Disney over its opposition to the new “Don’t Say Gay” law. Liberal Washington opinion writer Greg Sargent, in his April 4 column, argues that DeSantis will “soon face a reckoning” for his efforts to bully Disney.

“The stench of presidential ambition around Ron DeSantis has grown so thick that it resembles Charlie Brown pal Pigpen’s visible cloud of filth, and key to the Florida governor’s hopes is finding a way to capture the political energies unleashed by Donald Trump,” Sargent explains. “DeSantis must accomplish this while carving out a distinct path from that of the former president, who might run again himself. DeSantis’ new war with Disney appears to fit the bill perfectly.”

Sargent continues, “As a good report from NBC News chronicles, DeSantis’ fellow Republicans see this battle as key to burnishing his national anti-‘woke’ brand. DeSantis escalated his attacks on Disney amid its criticism of the law he signed limiting classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity. But DeSantis’ war on Disney will soon face a reckoning.”

The Post columnist goes on to say that DeSantis is likely to face blowback from GOP conservatives who are reflexively deferential to big business.

“A big question is whether DeSantis will seek to revoke Disney’s state tax incentives as a weapon in the war over that measure, which opponents call the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law,” Sargent notes. “If so, that could alienate Republicans who are fine with a bit of performative culture-warring but want to keep corporations happy where it really counts: i.e., on their bottom line. If not, that could disappoint right-wingers who actively want Republicans to wield state power wherever possible to bring ‘woke’ corporations to their knees.”

Hogan, during a CNN appearance, stressed that DeSantis shouldn’t bully Disney for expressing an opinion about a new law.

Sargent observes, “DeSantis has gone on the attack. He’s raising money off Disney’s opposition, labeling it ‘radical.’ And he recently suggested that he might target Disney’s ‘special privileges’ in the state. That’s repulsive stuff. Even some Republicans have noted that Disney is simply exercising its right to weigh in on a public issue, one that matters deeply to many customers and employees, and shouldn’t face the threat of state retaliation for doing so.”