Ron DeSantis has his hands in a lot of pots right now. He’s resembling an octopus as he attempts to snatch Disney’s special rights in the Sunshine State. The disagreement between the corporation and the governor started when Disney publicly pushed back against the “Don’t Say Gay” law that Governor DeSantis championed in Florida.
Subsequently, Disney pushed backed by reneging on a huge money-making development that would have brought in 2000 high-paying jobs and considerable tax revenue to Florida. Undoubtedly, central Florida’s bulk revenue stems from tourists.
“I think DeSantis has more to lose, as this incident made apparent, depending on whether, as a fairly skilled politician, he can somehow put a good face on this,” Richard Foglesong, a leading expert on Walt Disney World’s history and politics, told Insider last week.
insider
Nevertheless, DeSantis says he will not back down from his position in this fight. But he may want to re-think this since a study by Oxford Economics said that Orlando tourism generated $75.2 billion for central Florida in 2018. Granted, while that includes other attractions, Disney dominates the area’s tourism with four theme parks and two water parks.
Additionally, the study also said Orlando tourism accounted for nearly half a million jobs, bringing in $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenue for public safety, infrastructure, schools, and more.
Finally, Disney said it employed 75,000 people in Florida — which made it the state’s second-largest private employer behind the Publix grocery-store chain, according to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
