Governor Ron DeSantis calls for yet another judge to recuse himself from the lawsuit between the Governor and Disney. The reason being given is that the judge is too "woke" and cannot be impartial.

According to Deadline, DeSantis and his team claimed previous comments by Northern District of Florida Chief Judge Mark E. Walker suggested the court would not be impartial. A motion submitted by DeSantis' legal team stated, "The Court’s unprompted suggestion, on two separate occasions, that the State punished Disney by eliminating its ‘special status’ gives an appearance of partiality that would lead a reasonable observer to question whether the Court is predisposed to ruling that the State retaliated against Disney."

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In addition, the motion's arguments cite the court's use of the word "woke" as evidence of partiality. It stated, "Days before Disney filed suit, this Court in a written order expressed …its views about political rhetoric directed at ‘woke’ ideology, calling ‘woke’ the ‘boogeyman of the day.'" This is in reference to comments made surrounding the complaint against DeSantis' bills to remove the Walt Disney World's special district status and allow DeSantis to handpick the district's board. Elsewhere, the motion went on to state, "The Court’s reference to the woke 'boogeyman'... enhances the reasonable impression that the Court agrees with Disney’s characterizations."

What Happened Between Disney and DeSantis?

The feud between Disney and DeSantis began in 2022, when Disney released a statement condemning what was described as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, which DeSantis signed into law. The bill prevents teachers from instructing on sexual orientation or gender identity in certain grades.

RELATED: Florida Teacher Under Investigation For Showing Disney's Strange World to Students

Mickie and Minnie Mouse stand in front of Walt Disney World in Florida

In the months that followed, DeSantis removed Disney World's special district status by abolishing the Reedy Creek Improvement District and replacing it with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. Furthermore, the governor attempted to install a board of handpicked members to oversee the district.

Disney stated in its complaint that DeSantis' actions were "a targeted campaign of government retaliation — orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney’s protected speech — now threatens Disney’s business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region, and violates its constitutional rights." Most recently, the company halted a major project in Orlando. The project consisted of a planned office park, Lake Nona Town Center, that was reported to have cost almost $1 billion and brought and estimated 2,000 jobs to the area.

Source: Deadline