After being targeted by the Republican presidential candidate so he can gain political points in his one-man culture war, the Walt Disney Co. is ensuring Florida’s chief bigot, Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is held accountable by facing the company’s legal complaint in court, USA Today reports.
DeSantis filed a motion with the court to remove himself from a wide-ranging lawsuit by Disney claiming DeSantis and various minions in his administration illegally violated the US and Florida constitutions and corruptly retaliatory for attempting to punish the private company for speaking out against DeSantis’s policies targeting LGBTQ people and limiting their liberties. Disney argues that DeSantis cannot hide from his responsibilities as he tries to tout his bigotry as an asset in the GOP primary.
“The Governor seeks to evade responsibility for his actions on a narrower ground, asserting that a governor cannot be held officially liable for implementing, administering, and enforcing state laws that punish residents for political statements violating a state-prescribed speech code,” company attorneys wrote in a legal filing Wednesday, noting that DeSantis was the key motivator and primary cheerleader for pushing the bill through the state legislature.