The memorandum also points out that Disney is relying on specious hypotheticals to make its free speech case. Disney’s attorneys have cited racial and religious discrimination cases as well as gerrymandering cases to attempt to prove the company’s point, but the CFTOD attorneys argue that these citations are useless and beside the point of the dispute between the company and the state.
The attorneys even use Disney’s own words to prove that the case deserves to be dismissed.
“Disney says ‘nobody disputes that a state may remove unelected policymaking officials from high office or that elected leaders may employ senior officers committed to implementing their political agenda,’” the attorneys argue, citing a quote from Disney’s case. “But if that is true, this case should be over because Disney’s claim is, in effect, a derivative suit asserting that Florida’s elected officials may not select the officials who oversee the District.”