COMPETITION: Trump & DeSantis fight over who hates Disney more
Gov. Ron DeSantis seems finally ready to take shots at Trump.
Obviously, both men want the 2024 GOP nomination. The heavyweight fight would inevitably result in vicious punches.
But the rapidity with which the war exploded is shocking. Mediaite describes the dynamic as “pyrotechnic.”
If so, Disney lit the fuse.
As has been well-documented, the “Disney” issue began when the “Mouse” opposed Ron DeSantis’s “Don’t Say Gay” law.
The battle between DeSantis and Disney intensified to the point that the governor made significant changes to the governing district around the park.
No one. NO ONE fights like Disney.
The company filed a retaliation lawsuit while flanking DeSantis on the district, and — most damagingly, pulled a one billion dollar investment in an Orlando office park.
Owned, Mag-tard!
Enter Trump.
After Disney pulled its Florida investment on May 16th, Trump jumped in to take advantage of the “loss.”
A Forbes article dated May 18th documented Trump’s response. Trump issued a statement saying that DeSantis “single-handedly” lost the billion-dollar investment.
The orange one then said DeSantis was “too weak to fight for his state” and that the war on Disney has hurt DeSantis’s campaign and provided “even less for Florida’s economy.” (An afterthought for Trump.)
On Sunday, Trump took to Truth Social and called Disney a “woke and disgusting shadow of its former self” and then put the steaming pile in DeSantis’s lap as happening under the governor’s watch.
Evidently, Trump believes a governor is responsible for controlling corporate culture.
To be fair, DeSantis sure gave it a run and is still taking hit after hit as he continues his futile fight.
On Monday, DeSantis presented himself to Fox and Friends‘ viewers and, when asked whether he could win Iowa, DeSantis somehow managed to accuse Trump of favoring “woke Disney.”
Mediate transcribed DeSantis’s answer:
“And I think that those differences redound to my benefit in a place like Iowa. I mean, for example, you know, he’s taken the side of Disney in our fight down here in Florida. I’m standing for parents, I’m standing for children. And I think a multibillion dollar company that sexualizes children is not consistent with the values of Florida or the values of a place like Iowa.”
That is the type of lie that Democrats and progressives hoped to see in this fight. Finally, the two are flaming each other fact free.
Trump’s face must have gone from orange to… burnt orange because Trump retorted on Truth Social minutes later.
Trump cried out, “Ron DeSanctimonious just stated, without correction on Fox & Friends, that I was “backing” Disney. Wrong!” and then raged in fury that Fox and Friends didn’t correct DeSantis in real-time by reading Trump’s Truth Social post.
Trump sided with Disney a few weeks ago. But he got enough blowback from MAGA that he reversed himself yesterday. So now he wants them to forget what he said before. pic.twitter.com/xwuWMwbXUO
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) May 29, 2023
Ironically, Trump is right about the fact-check, and it could’ve led to even greater “pyrotechnics.”
No one ever doubted “the Mouse’s” ability to fight. Indeed, it’s pretty well undefeated.
But who could’ve guessed that the land of enchantment, the home of both Dopey and Grumpy (apropos of both), would be the catalyst that finally turned the election chemistry explosive?
And it’s only Monday. DeSantis’s official campaign isn’t a week old.
The market is closed today, but putting an order in for Orville Redenbacher and Amhuieser Busch stock wouldn’t be a bad idea Tuesday morning.
Short AMC. This summer’s top action flick will be an ongoing series on cable news.
I can be reached at jasonmiciak@gmail.com and on Twitter @JasonMiciak.
