On Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis reportedly urged Disney CEO Bob Iger to withdraw his company’s claim that the Republican governor had engaged in political retribution.
DeSantis was making reference to the special tax district at Walt Disney World, which has emerged as a significant front in the governor’s protracted conflict with one of the largest employers in his state.
The district, which has enabled the theme park in the Orlando region to virtually self-govern its operations since the 1960s, was specifically targeted by the governor and his supporters not long after Disney opposed a contentious GOP-backed classroom reform last year.
Bob Chapek, then-CEO of Disney, spoke out against the law that restricted discussion of gender and sexual orientation in the school in response to criticism from within his organization.
DeSantis signed a law in February that gave him power over the district by allowing him to choose the five members of the board of supervisors.
Disney was accused by that new board of undermining its authority by negotiating long-term development agreements.
Disney filed a federal lawsuit after the DeSantis board decided to annul those contracts in April.
The lawsuit’s other defendants, including DeSantis, have requested that the case be dismissed.
DeSantis, though, has regularly brought up his spat with Disney when running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.
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