Yahoo News and YouGov carried out a joint ballot of 1,584 U.S. adults from May 5 to eight concerning the feud between Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and The Walt Disney Company.
Disney vs. DeSantis Poll
Yahoo News and YouGov requested adults the next: “Last year, Disney publicly criticized a Florida law that bans discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms. Do you think Disney’s actions here were appropriate or inappropriate?”
39% of adults total voted that Disney’s actions have been applicable, whereas 42% voted that they have been inappropriate. 19% voted “not sure.”
Split up by political occasion, 66% of Democrats thought Disney’s actions have been applicable whereas 73% of Republicans thought they have been inappropriate.
The survey then requested the next: “In response to Disney’s criticism, DeSantis tried to abolish the special tax district that has enabled Disney World to essentially function as its own county government since 1967, then took control of the board overseeing the district. Do you think DeSantis’s actions here were appropriate or inappropriate?”
The numbers right here have been similar to the earlier ballot. 38% of adults total voted that DeSantis’ actions have been applicable whereas 40% thought they have been inappropriate and 22% have been not sure.
67% of Democrats thought DeSantis behaved inappropriately, whereas the identical share of Republicans thought he behaved appropriately.
Yahoo News and YouGov additionally requested if the courtroom ought to finally rule in favor of Disney or DeSantis. A majority 42% favored Disney, whereas 32% favored DeSantis.
When it involves independents, who’re the dividing line with regards to DeSantis’ presidential bid, 38% suppose the courtroom ought to aspect with Disney, and 32% aspect with DeSantis.
However, solely 34% of the 1,584 polled adults say they’ve heard “a lot” concerning the feud. Those who’ve heard essentially the most info usually tend to be viewers of MSNBC (62%) than Fox News (29%) or CNN (31%). So these polled are already much less prone to be DeSantis voters to begin with.
64% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents now view Disney unfavorably. 27% view the corporate favorably. 71% say Disney is “too political” and 77% say the corporate is extra liberal than conservative.
The survey additionally lined varied ongoing points within the nation at present, discovering that the majority Americans view “wokeness” — a frequent speaking level of DeSantis — because the least essential downside.
Disney Suing DeSantis & CFTOD Board
In their lawsuit towards Governor DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Board, Disney Parks & Resorts cites “a targeted campaign of government retaliation — orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney’s protected speech.” The plaintiff additional argues that this chronology of occasions “threatens Disney’s business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region, and violates its constitutional rights.”
Among different grievances, the Governor’s menace of recent tolls and taxes, and the Board’s choice to void the corporate’s ultimate settlement with the Reedy Creek Improvement District Board have been included within the doc.
They identify Governor DeSantis, the CFTOD Board of Supervisors members, and now former District administrator John Classe. Glen Gilzean, Jr. is the brand new District administrator.
Disney is suing for “declaratory and injunctive relief.” Injunctive reduction forces a celebration to behave in a sure means or prevents them from doing varied issues.
Disney regrets that it has come to this, however having exhausted efforts to hunt a decision, the Company is left with no selection however to file this lawsuit to guard its solid members, company, and native improvement companions from a relentless marketing campaign to weaponize authorities energy towards Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with sure State officers.
The federal decide initially hooked up to the lawsuit recused himself.
CFTOD Board Suing Disney
The CFTOD Board of Supervisors voted to file their own countersuit against Disney. While Disney’s lawsuit is through federal court, the Board’s lawsuit is through state court.
In their 188-page complaint, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District named itself as the plaintiff and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts US Inc. as the defendant. Through nearly 200 pages of legalese, the district asks the state court to render Disney’s development agreement with the Reedy Creek Improvement District as unenforceable, null, and void. They also ask the same to be done of the restrictive covenants, which notably set the benchmark for expiry at 21 years after the death of the last living descendant of King Charles III, living as of the date of the document.
The CFTOB additionally asks that all agreements cannot be enforced on Disney’s end either. Meanwhile, the Florida Legislature, which is controlled by Republicans and typically acts to rubber stamp Gov. DeSantis’ agenda, is working to pass a law that invalidates Disney’s agreement with Reedy Creek. Governor DeSantis said it was well within his power to do so.
Origins of the Feud
The Florida Governor and Walt Disney Company initially clashed over the corporation’s opposition to a much-debated and controversial Florida law regarding classroom instruction and discussion on sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools, alongside various other recent state laws and proposals in a similar vein.
Bob Chapek was Chief Executive Officer at the time and initially remained silent and passive on the issue — until massive internal criticisms from cast members and controversy over Disney’s practice of making hefty political contributions to campaigns and individuals allegedly against their own stated human principles came into focus.
In an apparent act of retribution over Chapek’s expression of dissent, the Governor moved forward with various verbal and legal assaults on Disney, including the attempted dissolution of Reedy Creek and the eventual transfer of power directly under his control. DeSantis argues he is attacking a rather vague perception of something he calls “woke politics,” invading the state. He further says he aims to put the people of Florida first through his actions:
Disney has gotten away with special deals from the state of Florida for way too long. It took a look under the hood to see what Disney has become to truly understand their inappropriate influence.
The Governor insists he will double down on efforts to punish the resort through methods both in the Legislature and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight Board. Notably, he promised to hike hotel taxes and institute tolls on the roads around Walt Disney World Resort property. He also threatened to build a prison on Walt Disney World land and signed a bill into law requiring state inspections of Monorails.
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