Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis standing ground on Disney fight

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says there’s “zero” chance the state will back down in its year-long feud with Disney — even after the entertainment giant dropped a $1 billion plan to build a new campus that would have brought 2,000 jobs to the Sunshine state.

“They can do whatever they want,” the two-term Republican governor and presumptive 2024 presidential candidate said Friday, when asked about the dispute at a diner in Manchester, N.H. “I know people try to chirp and say this or that. The chance of us backing down from that is zero.”

Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, told employees in a letter provided to FOX Business that the company would no longer be moving ahead with its office development in Lake Nona, citing “new leadership and changing business conditions.”

Disney first announced its expansion plan in July 2021.

However, Disney and DeSantis have since been at odds after he governor pushed through the state’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law, which bans teachers from talking about sexual orientation and gender for all public school students.

Disney’s opposition to the law led DeSantis to strip the company of its special Reedy Creek tax district, leading to lawsuits and countersuits in recent months.

Disney sued DeSantis in April over the Republican’s appointment of a board of supervisors in its self-governed theme park district, alleging the governor waged a “targeted campaign of government retaliation.”

The moves by DeSantis against Disney have been criticized by other Republican presidential candidates, including former President Donald Trump who claimed DeSantis “is being absolutely destroyed by Disney.”