Gay law and revenge, the Disney-DeSantis war ends in court – Corriere.it

From our New York correspondent – Disney sues Ron DeSantis: The clash between the entertainment empire and the conservative governor of Florida will end up in court. It began last year when Disney, which has a park in Florida that employs 75,000 employees, protested under pressure from employees against a law sponsored by the governor that Teachers are prohibited from discussing gender identity and sexuality with children. The measure is called “Parental Rights to Education” but critics call it “Don’t Call Gay”.

Since then, DeSantis has been put in place A plan to strip Disney World of its self-government privileges. The Californian company accuses him of punishing it for its political stances, “threatening its economic future in the region, and violating its constitutional rights.” At the heart of the dispute special tax area, Which includes Disney World. Created in 1967, the district southwest of Orlando gave Disney extraordinary control over fire, police, trash, electricity, road maintenance, and planning.

In February, however, the legislature allowed DeSantis to appoint a board of directors that would oversee the district In order to reduce the independence of the company. In the past, Disney, which pays $1.2 billion in taxes, has been able to appoint heads to the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the government entity that oversees it. However, Disney circumvented the maneuver: before the new members took office, it secured two agreements with the former members giving it permission to build another 14,000 hotel rooms, a fifth park, and three other smaller ones; and limit the use of the surrounding land (there are no strip clubs, for example).

Enraged, DeSantis responded by announcing possible new measures, including Building a prison next to Disney World and safety inspections in the park. Yesterday these two Disney deals were canceled by the new board of directors. A few minutes later, the lawsuit was filed with the help of Trump’s former attorney Daniel Petrocelli. “In America, the government cannot punish you for speaking your mind.”

DeSantis is a rival to Trump in the race for the Republican nomination to the White House. He is currently visiting Israel, after stops in Japan and South Korea, then travels to the UK: officially on a “trading mission” for the country, But he held meetings at the highest levels with prime ministers and foreign ministers. Surprised by a question from journalists about opinion polls in favor of Trump, he replied, “I am not a candidate. We will see if and when that changes.” He has boosted his conservative lineage in recent weeks Sign a law to ban abortion After six weeks, one of the most restrictive in the country, the other will allow release Death sentences for a convict By a vote of 8 out of 12 jurors, not unanimously.

The battle with Disney is the main theme of his “Rallies”. At a fundraiser in New Hampshire, he received a standing ovation when he said, “You can’t tell a 7-year-old he was born in the wrong body. I don’t care if he doesn’t like Disney. I stand for what’s right.”