Politics

DeSantis Super PAC spends six figures to make a terrible joke about Disney & Nikki Haley

Gov. Ron DeSantis
Gov. Ron DeSantis Photo: Screenshot

As the Disney/DeSantis feud continues to escalate, a Super PAC backing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is reportedly spending six figures so that folks on social media see the group refer to presidential candidate Nikki Haley (R) as “Mickey Haley.”

DeSantis has repeatedly sought to punish Disney after the corporation spoke out against Florida’s Don’t Say Gay law. On Wednesday, Disney filed a lawsuit against the anti-LGBTQ+ governor, suing him for “a targeted campaign of government retaliation.”

When asked about the lawsuit during an interview on Fox News, Haley, the former governor of South Carolina and a former Trump administration official, invited Disney to move to her state.

“If you take care of your businesses, you take care of your economy,” she said.

She later tweeted, “Hey @Disney, my home state will happily accept your 70,000+ jobs if you want to leave Florida. We’ve got great weather, great people, and it’s always a great day in South Carolina!” She also made sure to emphasize that the state is “not woke.”

In response to Haley, the DeSantis Super Pac Never Back Down tweeted “Mickey Haley!” alongside a heavily edited video compilation of Disney executives expressing support for LGBTQ+ representation. The compilation ended with the clip of Haley speaking on Fox News to invite Disney to her state.

The goal of this apparent “gotcha” video seems to be revealing that Haley is okay with a company that supports LGBTQ+ people.

To be clear, Haley does not support LGBTQ+ people and has even said she does not think Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Law goes far enough. She has also taken a hard line against transgender equality, arguing that respecting transgender people is a sign that the U.S. has been “weakened.”

Very proud of its massive zinger, Never Back Down posted another tweet a few hours later polling followers on whether to call Haley “Mickey Haley” or “Nikki Mouse.”

The video is part of a six-figure digital ad buy from the Super Pac, according to Florida Politics.

DeSantis has still not announced a presidential run, though it is almost certain he is planning to do so soon. But his feud with Disney has caused him to lose significant favor with his party. A recent Politico exposé revealed that both Democrats and Republicans in the Florida state legislature had had enough of the governor’s revenge-fueled agenda.

Prominent Republican donors have also expressed concern that DeSantis is not as viable a candidate as he once was. To many, he has become nothing more than the butt of a joke.

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