Disney Updates Lawsuit Against Ron DeSantis

Posted on by Mathew Corn Uncategorized

The Walt Disney Company has shown they’re not backing down in their recent lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. In fact, today, they filed an amended lawsuit after the state legislature moved to void the previously instated 30-year theme park development agreement created by the Reedy Creek Improvement District.

The battle continues to escalate between Governor DeSantis and the Walt Disney Company, with no signs of either side relinquishing. Recently, in an interview with Newsmax, DeSantis proclaimed victory against the company. “At the end of the day they just have to understand — the party is over for them,” He said about Disney, regarding what he refers to as “the will of the people” in the state of Florida.

Of course, this is all in response to Disney speaking out against DeSantis’ controversial Parental Rights in Education Act, which forbids teachers from discussing LGBTQ+ topics with their students in Florida schools. The state legislature also recently passed a bill that would allow the state to take custody of children who are “at risk” of receiving gender-affirming care, even those who do not reside in the state of Florida.

Disney has made their commitment to inclusivity and protection of their Cast Members clear, which launched a retaliation campaign against them by the Governor’s office, including the dissolving of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, Disney’s self-governing district. The back-and-forth about the district between Disney and DeSantis has a long and complicated timeline, which you can read more about here.

Reedy Creek Disney Lawsuit

The skirmish culminated with Disney suing Ron DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board members for violation of the First Amendment, alleging that the Governor’s actions were clear and obvious targeting of the company for exercising free speech.

Today, Disney amended that complaint with more direct quotes from DeSantis that point towards this retaliation. Disney’s amended complaint — read it here — opens with a DeSantis quote from last week, in which he said, “[T]his all started, of course, with our parents’ rights bill.” They also stated:

“The State’s actions over the last two weeks are the latest strikes… At the Governor’s bidding, the State’s oversight board has purported to ‘void’ publicly noticed and duly agreed development contracts, which had laid the foundation for billions of Disney’s investment dollars and thousands of jobs. Days later, the State Legislature enacted, and Governor DeSantis signed legislation rendering these contracts immediately void and unenforceable. These government actions were patently retaliatory, patently anti-business, and patently unconstitutional.”

“The Governor and his allies have made clear they do not care and will not stop. The Governor recently declared that his team would not only “void the development agreement”—just as the State has now done, twice—but also planned “to look at things like taxes on the hotels,” “tolls on the roads,” “developing some of the property that the district owns” with “more amusement parks,” and even putting a “state prison” next to Walt Disney World. “Who knows? I just think the possibilities are endless,” he said.”

The board has moved to countersue Disney, but public opinion seems to be largely in Disney’s favor. Disney is the single largest taxpayer in the state of Florida and also the biggest employer in Central Florida.

This amendment comes mere days before the company’s next earnings call, which is scheduled for May 10.

Disney Using DeSantis’ Memoir Against Him in Court

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks

The Reedy Creek battle between the Walt Disney Company and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis continues, and it turns out that Disney’s prime witness is… Ron DeSantis.

The DeSantis/Disney feud began when the company spoke out against the controversial “Parents Rights of Education” Bill. The Governor then made motions to remove the board in charge of Walt Disney World’s special Reedy Creek Improvement District to ensure he controlled them.

Disney responded to the new board by creating a contract with the former board, giving the company control of the Reedy Creek Improvement District until the last living descendent of King Charles III passed away. Currently, said descendent is two years old.

This has since been followed by attacks from both sides, with DeSantis threatening to build a prison next to Walt Disney World, Disney suing the Governor and the state of Florida, and the newly named Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Board counter-suing Disney.

This whole conflict has led to the potential Presidential nominee losing support within his own party. To make matters worse for the Florida Governor, the Walt Disney Company has found an unlikely ally: Republican Governor Ron DeSantis.

Disney’s Lawsuit Cites Pages From DeSantis’ Own Book

Mickey Mouse laughs at a photo of Ron DeSantis looking pensive. They are pictured in front of the Reedy Creek sign.

According to Nicolle Wallace on a recent episode of MSNBC’s Deadline: White House, Disney is using Ron DeSantis’ memoir, The Courage To Be Free, against the Governor.

Wallace said on the program, “Today, Disney’s lawyers are getting help making their case from a very unlikely person, and that is Ron DeSantis. More specifically, his recently published memoir in which he routinely flaunts the idea of a political retaliation campaign — that he thought of all by himself — against Disney. So much so that the actual lawsuit actually cites pages from his book.”

Wallace then quoted the Washington Post: “DeSantis’s book brags about his rapid mobilization of the state legislature to target Disney’s tax district. The same passage declares that this happened because of the company’s support of indoctrinating young schoolchildren in woke gender identity politics.”

Charlie Sykes from The Bulwark further commented that this is a real “quagmire” for the Governor who promotes himself as “an anti-woke bully” and that “he won’t back down,” especially since DeSantis’ Super PAC is named “Never Back Down.”

Sykes closed his remarks, saying, “This is going to play out very differently in a federal court than it does on Twitter.”

Florida Senate Takes Over Disney’s Monorails

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks

The Florida Senate has passed a bill that gives them some control over Disney’s monorail system.

This afternoon, May 2, 2023, the Florida State Senate passed SB 1250. While this is a standard transportation bill, it includes an amendment that would allow the Florida Department of Transportation to oversee inspections of Disney World’s monorails. The amendment states that “any governmentally or privately owned fixed-guideway transportation systems operating in this state which are located within an independent special district created by a local act which has boundaries within two contiguous counties.” The bill passed 26-14.

The amendment was originally filed days after a press conference with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in which he discussed the state’s takeover and dissolving of the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Previously, the Governor has threatened to make major adjustments to Walt Disney World’s operations, including the possibility of raising tolls on roads leading to the property or building a prison next to Walt Disney World.

So what does this mean for Walt Disney World? To start off, the bill allows the state government to oversee inspections of Disney World’s monorail system, meaning they could close, modify, or disable it for any reason they see fit. This bill could also go on to apply to Disney’s Skyliner system, boat transportation, or bus operations, which would grant the Florida Senate major control over how Guests get around Walt Disney World.

While the bill may seem innocent enough, Governor DeSantis and the new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District have made it clear that they’re not pleased with Disney’s operations after the company spoke out against the Governor’s Parental Rights in Education Act.

In fact, the Governor has made his intentions of targeting Disney so clear that Disney recently filed a bombshell lawsuit against the Governor and the members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District for violation of their free speech as a company. Yesterday, the Board voted to file a countersuit against Disney. Public opinion on the case is largely in Disney’s favor, but the Governor has commented that he believes Disney’s lawsuit has no merit.

While something as drastic as a permanent closure of the monorail system or any other transportation system is unlikely, the bill does give the Florida Senate (and in turn, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District) a lot of control. If Disney’s lawsuit is to be believed, that means they could use it to hinder Disney’s operations if they see fit.

Disney Springs Shop Owners Break Silence on Reedy Creek Battle

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Uncategorized

Yet another afflicted party is speaking up in the battle between Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Walt Disney World Resort’s Reedy Creek Improvement District.

DeSantis’s hand-picked Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board held its second-ever meeting on Wednesday, pressing forward despite the hastily-passed King Charles clause. Before transferring power to the new board, Reedy Creek essentially made itself powerless effective until 22 years after the death of the last current living descendant of King Charles III.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Disney Springs business owners appealed to DeSantis’s board for help. Representatives from Wine Bar George, Splitsville, T-Rex Cafe, Yak and Yeti, The Boathouse, and more were present at the meeting to express their concerns after the board voted to void an agreement between the State of Florida and Disney Springs tenants, upping their taxes to fund the battle between DeSantis and Reedy Creek.

Business owners say the change threatens their livelihoods and asked to create an ongoing conversation with the new board members. One told the Orlando Business Journal they felt like “collateral damage” in the battle.

“At the beginning of the meeting, they couldn’t be any nicer. At the end of the meeting, they say they are going to raise taxes,” another said.

Reedy Creek Fire Dept. truck in front EPCOT's Spaceship Earth at Disney World

Hours later, Walt Disney World Resort announced a lawsuit against DeSantis. The Walt Disney Company alleges that its First Amendment right to free speech was violated when the Republican Governor retaliated against former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, who spoke out against the Parental Rights In Education Act (“Don’t Say Gay”).

Nevertheless, DeSantis claims he and his board did nothing wrong. In a press release, the Governor’s communication director wrote that the “lawsuit is yet another example of [Disney’s] hope to undermine the will of the Florida voters and operate outside the bounds of the law.”

Disney Sues DeSantis Over Free Speech Violations

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks

Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis has been at war with Disney since mid-2022. In that time, he has learned a valuable life lesson: If you’re going to come for the Mouse, you’d better come correct because Disney doesn’t play around. They are relentless too. You won’t find Disney backing down from a fight. DeSantis has been met with significant criticism for his role in the ongoing feud.

In a shocking turn of events today, Disney has said, “I’ll see your empty threat and raise you a real one.” We are just discovering that Disney has, in fact, filed a lawsuit against Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis. The suit comes as the final straw in the ongoing battle over the Reedy Creek Improvement District and governmental overreach in regard to constitutionally protected free speech.

This battle began when DeSantis signed his Parental Rights in Education Act, which seeks to ban educators from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity with students younger than 3rd grade. After initially being silent on the matter, Disney spoke out against it. That should have been the end of it, but DeSantis chose to threaten and punish Disney over their stance. He took away their Reedy Creek Improvement District, targeted Disney over trivial matters, and canceled future projects. He also threatened to build a prison next door in a very public meltdown. It’s clear today that Disney was simply placating the Governor up to this point but has finally had enough.

A review of the complaint shows several grievances, but perhaps the most poignant comes at the very end: “Disney also knows that it is fortunate to be able to take a stand against the state’s retaliation – a stand smaller businesses and individuals might not be able to take when the State comes after them for expressing their own view.”

The complaint also seeks to prove that DeSantis violated due process, was in breach of contract, and has filed two first amendment violation grievances. The complaint stated that Disney never wanted a fight with DeSantis and tried to open dialog in order to de-escalate the fight several times and was met with derision. They also expressed regret for how things have turned out, saying, “Disney regrets that it has come to this. But having exhausted efforts to seek a resolution, the Company is left with no choice but to file this lawsuit to protect its Cast Members, Guests, and local development partners from a relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain State officials.”

The suit has been filed in Federal courts. No hearing date has been set yet, but when that happens, you can be sure Disney Dining will bring you up to date information. Grab your popcorn, folks. This is about to get good.