Ron DeSantis may be lagging far behind Donald Trump in GOP primary polls, but the big guy isn’t even his biggest nemesis. That would be The Walt Disney Company. For well over a year the Florida governor has bizarrely waged war against his state’s biggest company, all because they don’t hate the LGBTQIA+ community. Now he’s trying to weasel out of the lawsuit Disney brought against him.
As per CNBC, on Monday attorneys representing DeSantis asked a federal court to toss Disney’s lawsuit, which accuses DeSantis of “government retaliation” after they publicly denounced his so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Not only do lawyers for the governor argue that Disney has a weak case, but that DeSantis and at least one other defendant can’t be sued in this case anyway.
“Disney lacks standing to sue the Governor and Secretary, who are also immune from suit,” DeSantis’ lawyers argued. They also asserted that the Disney suit “fails to state a claim on which relief can be granted” and that “Disney cannot meet its burden.”
DeSantis only formally announced his candidacy the other week, but it was generally understood for months that he was in the game. He’s vowed to not let a little presidential campaign get in the way of him duking it out with a company that employs a good chunk of his constituents, but surely it’s not easy fighting two fronts at once. Indeed, he recently made a “rookie movie” by pissing off New Hampshire voters.
(Via CNBC)