‘They went in on their own’: DeSantis signals no amnesty for Disney

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Tuesday appeared unready to offer amnesty to The Walt Disney Company after the entertainment giant’s new boss apologized for its war against Florida. 

Disney launched an offensive against Florida in March after DeSantis signed a bill prohibiting teachers from having sexual conversations with children from kindergarten through third grade. 

The exact wording of HB1557 said that “classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.” 

The Left establishment activated a nationwide campaign against Florida and DeSantis, falsely calling HB1557 the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, even though the bill never even mentions the word “gay”. Disney famously joined the fray by criticizing DeSantis and the bill that “should never have passed,” and pledged $5 million to “protect LGBTQ+ rights.” Leaked video of an “all-hands” Zoom meeting at Disney showed a Disney executive producer pledging to inject her “not-at-all-secret gay agenda” in a children’s show. 

In response, DeSantis said he was not “comfortable having that type of agenda getting special treatment in my state” and filed HB3C, a bill which had allowed Disney to self-govern in Florida for 50 years. This included control over fire and police units in its “special district” and colossal tax breaks. 

On Tuesday, returning Disney CEO Bob Iger apologized during a town hall with employees for the company getting “dragged” into the feud with Florida. 

“I was sorry to see us dragged into that battle. And I have no idea exactly what its ramifications are in terms of the business itself,” said the entertainment boss. 

“What I can say is, the state of Florida has been important to us for a long time, and we have been very important to the state of Florida,” Iger continued. “That is something I’m extremely mindful of and will articulate if I get the chance.” 

But in an interview with Fox News host Tucker Carlson Tuesday night, DeSantis did not appear mollified. 

“We didn’t drag them in, Tucker. They went in on their own, and not only opposed the bill. They threatened to get it repealed.” 

“These are parents’ rights, important policies in our state that are very popular. And so they brought this on themselves,” he continued. “All we did was stand up for what’s right. And, yes, they’re a big, powerful company. But you know what? We stand up for our folks. And I don’t care what a Burbank-based California company says about our laws.”