Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who seeks to be the GOP presidential nominee next year, denounced Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for handling the battle with the Walt Disney Co.
He claimed the Republican governor’s approach was neither Republican nor conservative.
“I think it is important that we make sure that we don’t become heavy-handed in government to punish those that are creating jobs for Americans and creating income and growing private sector. That’s not what Republicanism is about. It’s not what a conservative is about,” Hutchinson said during an interview on “Fox News Sunday.”
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Hutchinson added, “I don’t believe whether you’re on the left or right of the political spectrum, government should not be telling business what they can and cannot do in terms of speech. And however you describe it, it appears to me that the governor did not like what Disney was doing in terms of what they were saying in exercising speech, so they’re being punished.”
“I don’t agree with how Disney has handled things, but you don’t use the heavy hand of government to punish a business,” he continued. “I think that’s wrong, and I think’s that’s indicating motivation to go after business because you disagree with their policies or what they’re saying. The left does that. I don’t want the right or conservatives to do that either.”
Hutchinson also had his moment of anti-conservatism, as unlike DeSantis, he has shown that he is OK with the LGBTQ’s advocacy for “gender-affirming care” for children.
Two years ago, he vetoed a bill to make Arkansas the first state to ban gender-confirming treatments or surgeries for minors.
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Last week GOP state lawmakers passed a bill, which DeSantis is expected to endorse, that would allow a special board appointed by DeSantis to oversee Disney’s former special tax district.
Last month, the district leaders thought they had made an end run around the law, ending their reign by transferring authority of development decisions to the Disney company.
“They thought that they could create some type of development agreements that would essentially render everything that we did null and void and put them in control in perpetuity for this,” DeSantis said in reponse. “Well, that’s not going to work. That’s not going to fly.”
Trump Slams DeSantis On Disney Fight “Work On The Squatter MESS”
Former President Trump took a shot at Florida Governor DeSantis last Tuesday following the governor’s press conference on Monday regarding the Disney redistricting battle.
“DeSanctus is being absolutely destroyed by Disney. His original P.R. plan fizzled, so now he’s going back with a new one in order to save face. Disney’s next move will be the announcement that no more money will be invested in Florida because of the Governor – In fact, they could even announce a slow withdrawal or sale of certain properties, or the whole thing. Watch! That would be a killer. In the meantime, this is all so unnecessary, a political STUNT! Ron should work on the squatter MESS!” Trump said on Truth Social Tuesday.
News4Jax reported that two female squatters and their pit bulls made themselves comfortable in a Florida rental property for over a month, causing nearly $40,000 in damages.
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According to reports, the pair attacked the landlords by flinging a brick and human feces at them.
The landlord called on Gov. Ron DeSantis to take action against squatters in the Sunshine State after her property was taken over.
“I want Gov. DeSantis to change the laws,” Peeples told Fox News. “Tenants are not the same as squatters.”
Escalating his attacks on Walt Disney Co., Gov. Ron DeSantis on last Monday announced plans to revoke changes made by the former Reedy Creek Improvement District board and to increase state oversight of the entertainment giant’s theme-park rides.
Also, DeSantis said his hand-picked board to replace the former Reedy Creek leaders will consider how undeveloped Disney land can be used, suggesting the possibility of a state park, workforce housing, or a prison.
“They thought that they could create some type of development agreements that would essentially render everything that we did null and void and put them in control in perpetuity for this,” DeSantis said. “Well, that’s not going to work. That’s not going to fly.”
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DeSantis’ appearance Monday at the Reedy Creek Administration Building in Lake Buena Vista was the latest move in escalating tensions between DeSantis and the entertainment giant, which is a major financial engine for the state.
The tensions are rooted in Disney last year opposing a controversial state law that restricts instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. DeSantis and Republican lawmakers initially moved to dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which the state created in the 1960s and essentially gave Disney control over issues such as land use, fire protection and sewer services that are typically handled by local governments.
But in February, lawmakers passed a DeSantis-backed bill that shifted control away from Disney and allowed DeSantis to appoint a five-member Board of Supervisors for the district. The bill also renamed the district as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
The issue was refueled recently, however, after disclosures that the former Reedy Creek board turned over most of its powers to Disney before DeSantis was able to seat his board.
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In a news release Monday, DeSantis said the former board’s “shady tactics” are “riddled with legal deficiencies,” including a failure to provide required notices to property owners.
Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
During an April 3 shareholders’ meeting, Disney CEO Bob Iger criticized DeSantis’ actions as “anti-business and anti-Florida.”
Appearing Monday with DeSantis, Rep. Carolina Amesty, a Windermere Republican whose district includes Disney properties, said it’s time for Disney executives to have a “sober conversation and retake the company from the radical ideologies that have hijacked it.”
“You’re in the business of entertaining children and families,” Amesty said. “You’re not in the business of social re-engineering or promoting radical political ideologies.”
A proposal expected to go before legislative committees next week would require the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to inspect rides and attractions at Disney. The department currently inspects amusement-park rides, except rides at facilities or parks with more than 1,000 employees and who have full time inspectors on staff.
“Where a person is injured should not determine how the state responds. Everyone should have to play by the same rules,” Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, who accompanied DeSantis at Monday’s event, said.
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“This change proposed by the Legislature and the governor makes sense,” Simpson added. “As a businessman and farmer, I have endured meaningless bureaucracy and unnecessary government interference. Fighting back is one of the reasons I ran for office. But there is a legitimate role for the government in public safety and security. I believe this proposal strikes that important balance.”
But other large theme parks in the state aren’t expected to be affected by the changes.
DeSantis, after saying it is “very important that we have uniform applicability of the laws,” said the legislation is expected to apply only to Disney.
“These inspections will be required for amusement parks within special districts,” DeSantis said.
During a meeting Wednesday, the newly appointed board also will consider other changes, including a look at speeding up paying off debts and the role that Disney can play in workforce housing.
“I think you’re going to see a lot of action from the state board’s perspective on Wednesday and then in the ensuing weeks,” DeSantis said. “And I think it’s all about making sure that the vision is made into a reality where this company’s under the law, following the law, paying taxes and honoring the debts and not governing itself.”
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