Newsom vs. DeSantis: California Gov. Woos Disney over Gay Instruction Bill

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) is attempting to use the controversy over Florida’s new bill restricting instruction on sexuality and gender in grades K-3 to woo Disney jobs back to the Golden State and its supposed culture of tolerance.

The entertainment company, known historically for catering to children, was initially quiet about the bill until CEO Bob Chapek was pressured by activists to oppose it. The Biden White House and the left erroneously call it the “Don’t Say Gay,” bill and claim that it targets at-risk “LGBTQI+” youth.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has pushed back against Disney: “When you have companies that have made a fortune off being family-friendly and catering to families and young kids, they should understand that parents of young kids do not want this injected into their kid’s kindergarten classroom,” he said.

Newsom, who attacked Florida over the bill in his recent State of the State address (falsely claiming that the Florida law bans the use of the word “gay”), tweeted: “Disney, the door is open to bring those jobs back to California – the state that actually represents the values of your workers.”

Disney, the door is open to bring those jobs back to California – the state that actually represents the values of your workers. https://t.co/kbCi7Zgs90

— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) March 13, 2022

He linked to an article in the Los Angeles Times that reported Disney employees were “hurt” and “angry” about the Florida bill, though it appeared the employees were upset over the erroneous reports about what is in the bill, rather than what the bill says, since it focuses on protecting children and parents’ rights to know the curriculum.

California and Florida have often been juxtaposed during the coronavirus pandemic, with the former taking a draconian approach, and the latter keeping its economy largely open. The performance of both states was comparable in terms of health outcome, but Florida’s economy is much healthier, and has attracted residents from across the nation, including California.

Notably, Florida’s Disney World (July 2020) reopened much more quickly than California’s Disneyland (April 2021). In September 2021, Disney announced that it was moving 2,000 jobs from high-tax California to business-friendly Florida.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.