Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday threatened to mount a major retaliation campaign against “woke” Disney after he got trolled by former President Donald Trump for being “outsmarted by Mickey Mouse.”
Days after Trump mocked him, DeSantis vowed the state would reassert control over an Orlando-area municipal district that Disney has sought to maintain its grip on.
The Republican presidential contender also warned that the state would impose harsh new inspection and liability rules for Disney World rides and monorails if the entertainment giant doesn’t cave in the standoff.
A smirking DeSantis even mused about using unused land to build a jail near the world famous child-friendly paradise.
“Maybe you need another state prison. Who knows?” he said. “I just think that the possibilities are endless.”
The wild threats, some of which would face certain legal challenges, raise the stakes in DeSantis’ long feud with the Sunshine state’s largest employer.
He accuses Disney of catering to “woke” progressive ideals in part because it opposed his “Don’t Say Gay” law limiting discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools.
At DeSantis’ behest, Florida lawmakers approved a state takeover of Reedy Creek, a quasi-municipality that Disney used to effectively self-govern its theme park and resorts in Florida for decades.
But the media giant undermined the takeover on its way out the door by passing a string of rules that effectively prevent major changes for decades.
Trump, the 2024 Republican frontrunner, mocked DeSantis for getting outflanked in his own back yard.
“[DeSantis]got outplayed, outsmarted, and embarrassed by Mickey Mouse and Disney,” Trump wrote on his social media site last week.
The salvo came as Trump seeks to ding DeSantis ahead of a potential Republican presidential primary fight by claiming he isn’t ready to be president and suggesting he would cut popular retirement programs.
DeSantis has mostly kept his powder dry but has put out a new ad criticizing Trump for being soft on gun rights and “sounding like a Democrat.”
Trump has taken a wide lead of about 2-1 over DeSantis in recent weeks as GOP voters rally around Trump amid his myriad legal woes. Other potential candidates trail far behind.
The Disney dispute could prove a major test for DeSantis as he considers mounting a White House run.
The DeSantis-picked new board will meet on Wednesday to consider its options.
Lawmakers could move as soon as next week on plans to revoke the previous Disney board’s moves and enhancing inspections for Disney, a move that could also lead to liability issues for the theme park giant.
DeSantis said the crackdown would only apply to Disney not other major theme parks in the state, including Universal Orlando, SeaWorld, Busch Gardens and Legoland, which could open it to legal challenge.