DeSantis took away Disney’s longstanding ability to govern itself through their own tax district, ostensibly to eliminate unfair tax advantages that Disney had in the state. But the ploy was obvious to the most casual observer to be retaliation because Disney had the audacity to disagree with some of the governor’s conservative viewpoints on social issues. DeSantis admitted as much, in writing.
Eliminating the special tax district paved the way for other DeSantis threats: additional taxes on hotels, tolls on roads, building a state prison next to Disney, developing some of the property owned by the district, etc. Just petty, purely punitive shit because DeSantis was upset that his authority was challenged by Mickey and Minnie.
So Disney sued DeSantis. Now, after abusing his office to quiet and coerce Disney, DeSantis is striking back, calling the lawsuit “political.” Which, it is, of course. But Disney didn’t start the fight. And anti-masker, anti-vaccine, open-the-state-for-business DeSantis asking for “immunity” is poetic.
I agree with the argument in this case. Our lawmakers should be shielded from personal lawsuits while carrying out their duties representing us as citizens. And allowing a corporation to control its own government is usually bad policy. But in this case, DeSantis weaponized the government against Disney, waging a personal war in an attempt to silence and punish a rival, in a way that arguably violated the law and the Constitution. When you go out of your way to prove it’s a personal vendetta, it’s hard to backpedal and claim immunity because it’s just “politics.”
Ultimately, state and taxpayer money was used to start the fight, and state and taxpayer money will be used to resolve the dispute, so congratulations Florida GOP voters, you’ve played yourselves.
Image: Gage Skidmore, license CC BY-SA 2.0
