A couple items from a new article at the WSJ.
"Some Republicans privately said Mr. DeSantis’s approach is increasingly looking like a personal vendetta and heavy-handed government intervention into the affairs of one of the state’s largest employers. Publicly, cracks are emerging.
“Disney is really acting in a way that we’d expect most free-market actors would act. Companies always push back and find a way to respond to aggressive regulation,” said Republican state Rep. Spencer Roach, who represents a district in the Fort Myers area. “I think the governor is right, but I’m not sure at this point that the public is with us, and I would urge the governor to be cautious as he goes on with this fight with Disney.”"
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"Disney has lately taken a low-key approach with Florida policy makers, according to people familiar with its lobbying operation. The company’s government affairs team in Tallahassee has long had lobbyists with a deep list of contacts from both political parties to advance the company’s agenda, including on environmental issues and policies related to technology regulation. The company flexed its muscle to secure a carve-out from a 2021 social-media law aimed at protecting users from censorship.
In the past, the company’s lobbyists acted as though they were in the driver’s seat on many policy issues and could be dismissive, the people said. Now, the company’s lobbyists refrain from engaging assertively with policy makers, and instead use surrogates to promote their point of view, they said.
Disney’s government affairs team in Florida didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Lawmakers who have met with the company’s lobbyists in recent weeks said their strategy amounts essentially to lying low, providing feedback on other legislation that affects the company through business associations and having fewer meetings than usual with lawmakers.
Two of Disney’s top in-house lobbyists in Florida haven’t filed any notices of appearance with the state House of Representatives—required to lobby on any issue or bill before the chamber—in 2023, according to disclosure data. In the three previous years, they together filed 91 notices of appearance."
The conflict between Florida’s governor and Iger’s entertainment giant has turned into a drawn-out legal battle. Some Republicans question the strategy.
www.wsj.com