DeSantis advises Disney to drop lawsuit against him, tells Bob Iger he's "going to lose"

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis advised Disney to drop the lawsuit against him for alleged political retaliation and accept that the company would no longer enjoy the “special privileges” it had.

In an interview with CNBC, DeSantis was asked what he would say to Disney CEO Bob Iger about the legal dispute they face, and the governor explained that contrary to what many believe, he liked Walt Disney World so much that he married his wife there. “So it’s not like we’re opposed. I mean, we’ve appreciated working with them over the years, but I would just say, go back to what you did well. I think it’s going to be the right business decision,” the governor said, adding that one of the first steps Disney should take is to drop their lawsuit and accept the changes.

“They’re suing the state of Florida; they’re going to lose that lawsuit,” he said, noting that no company should have special privileges.

“This is a great place to do business. Your competitors all do very well here. So all we want to do is treat everybody the same and let’s move forward. But I’m not fine with giving extraordinary privileges,” he said, referring to the special district that Disney lost and hopes to recover with its lawsuit.

Disney doesn’t want to throw in the towel

So far, Disney CEO Bob Iger is unwilling to cede the district that allowed the company self-governance. Even as DeSantis filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Iger insisted his battle would continue and accused the governor of wanting to “evade responsibility for his actions” by filing the motion.