Lawmaker speaks out on Ramaswamy criticisms against DeSantis on Disney feud

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, responded to 2024 Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s criticisms against Gov. Ron DeSantis for previously approving a legal exemption that applied to Walt Disney World.

The criticism stems from SB 7072, titled “Social Media Platforms,” which was passed in 2021. The bill cracked down on social media “deplatforming,” but notably included an exemption for massive theme parks, such as Walt Disney World.

In response to DeSantis’ ongoing Disney dispute, Ramaswamy said DeSantis “really lost it” by signing the exemption in 2021.

“They wrote into a last-minute exception into that law for anyone who also operates a theme park more than 25 acres in the state of Florida,” he said. “That’s crony capitalism.”

“And so, the irony is, Ron DeSantis, who’s now railing against crony capitalism and rolling that back, was the one who actually passed that into law for the case of Disney,” Ramaswamy said. “So, I think that undermines the credibility of his crusade.”

However, in 2022, a bill from Andrade removed that exemption and was signed into law by the governor.

“I recall him signing the law REMOVING that exemption last year…” Andrade fired back at Ramaswamy. “Ask me how I know he did,” he said, posting a screenshot of the legislation’s summary.

Andrade replied to Ramaswamy’s appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, saying the 2021 legislation’s exemption was added “in the final days of the Session” and that the governor could either “kill the bill” or sign it.

According to the Florida Senate’s website, the amendment that added the exemption was filed on April 29 in the late afternoon.

According to their calendar, April 30 was the final day of the session.

“In 2022, when we had the chance, we removed it, and he ALSO signed that.”

As it stands, Disney has filed a lawsuit against the governor for efforts to nullify last-minute, far-reaching agreements the company made with the outgoing Reedy Creek board that gave the company considerable power over the Central Florida district.

The company alleged that the governor-appointed board is engaging in a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” that would threaten “Disney’s business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region, and violates its constitutional rights.”

“I don’t think the suit has merit. I think it’s political. I think they filed in Tallahassee for a reason, because they’re trying to generate some district court decision, but we’re very confident on the law,” DeSantis said.