Colorado Gov. Jared Polis Slams Ron DeSantis Over Disney Attack; Florida Governor Hits Back

Colorado Governor Jared Polis and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis traded words over a bill passed in the Sunshine State that dissolved the special self-governing status of Disney.

On Thursday, the Colorado governor told Fox News about his thoughts on the Florida lawmakers' move in connection to Disney.

"When government starts threatening private companies with retribution based on their free speech, that takes us down the road towards authoritarianism," Polis noted.

Polis also said that a company's different viewpoint does not mean that the firm should be penalized by politicians. He noted that consumers could do that by choosing not to go to Disneyland or not buy the product.

"But where it becomes inappropriate is where government leaders say we're specifically running laws that penalize your company because we don't like the way you've exercised your free speech," Polis said.

Polis warned Florida lawmakers that if they continue to target specific companies with legislation to hurt them due to their political viewpoints, the state may witness "a mass exodus of companies."

It was not the first time Polis spoke against Florida's measure against Disney. Earlier this week, Polis slammed DeSantis after the Florida governor threatened to revoke Disney's special tax status because Disney's CEO criticized the state's so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill, Deseret News reported.

Polis tweeted that "Florida's authoritarian socialist attacks on the private sector are driving businesses away."

The Colorado governor added that the state does not "meddle in affairs of companies" and invited Disney to put a "Mountain Disneyland" in Colorado.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' Camp Hits Back at Colorado Governor Jared Polis

In a Thursday email to Fox News, Ron DeSantis's office pushed back against Jared Polis's comments. DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw said most Floridians, especially those who have fled from socialist countries like Cuba and Venezuela, understand what socialism is.

Pushaw then lectured Polis and other politicians about the meaning of socialism, a word used by the Colorado governor in criticizing DeSantis and other lawmakers. Pushaw said: "Socialism IS: an authoritarian system where the state controls the means of production and the entire economy."

She added that socialism is not passing legislation to create a more even playing field for all businesses or selling shares of a corporation because of evidence that a corporation "is not acting in shareholders' best interests and therefore creates unnecessary risks to investors."

Pushaw then defended DeSantis, claiming that the Florida governor "has consistently supported a more level playing field for all businesses in Florida."

The spokeswoman further noted that DeSantis' move is "not retaliatory" as they only pass legislation that allows all companies to do business in a "fairer environment."

Pushaw added that Disney gets too many privileges, such as serving as a regulator and a business at the same time, while other companies don't.

Florida Senate and House Passed Bill to Remove Self-Regulatory Status of Disney

The Florida Senate and the House passed the bill to remove the special district that allows the Walt Disney Company to self-govern its theme park in Orlando.

The measure, which will be sent to Ron DeSantis for his signature, would dismantle Disney's special district, known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District, on June 1, 2023. House lawmakers passed the bill on Thursday in a 68-38 vote after the Senate's 23-16 vote Wednesday.

DeSantis and Disney started to publicly call out each other last month after the company condemned the Parental Rights in Education law, which restricts discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida classrooms, among many things.

Disney earlier said its goal as a company is to repeal the law by the legislature or struck down in the courts. Ron DeSantis took aim at Disney as a response and described it as "woke" and sent a fund-raising email to supporters, saying it had "lost any moral authority to tell you what to do."

Some Florida legislators then started threatening to revoke Disney World's special tax district. The "Independent Special Districts" bill quickly moved forward in the House and Senate shortly after the governor's announcement.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Joshua Summers

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