The governor of Florida, the ultra Ron DeSantis, yesterday signed the law that wrests from Disney the autonomous control of the district of its theme park in Orlando, to assign it to the state itself. The Republican best placed to challenge Donald Trump for the conservative candidacy for the 2024 presidential elections thus punishes the entertainment giant for having rejected his anti-gay policies. “There's a new sheriff in town,” DeSantis proclaimed at the bill signing ceremony.
The text settles a special rule that since 1967 allowed the "dream factory" to act as a local government, with its own taxes and bonds, in the vast area where Walt Disney World was installed more than half a century ago.
This political expropriation is the governor's response to the adverse reaction of the executive president of the entertainment firm, Bob Chapek, before the "Don't say gay" law: a set of educational rules that since last March, and under the impulse of DeSantis, prevents educate public school children up to third grade on sexual orientation and gender identity issues.
Protesting the new law, Chapek announced in April that the company would stop making political donations to state leaders after decades of contributing heavily to their campaigns, including those of DeSantis.
The new charters call for the governor himself to appoint a five-member board to oversee the government services provided by the Disney district on its sprawling theme park grounds.
The coup is part of what appears to be the movements leading up to the official presentation of DeSantis' candidacy for 2024. In this context, the governor is publishing a book today, The Courage to Be Free And lately he has not stopped organizing meetings with donors, senior officials and public figures.
DeSantis goes for it all.
