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Disney Stock Down 33 Percent Since CEO Instigated Feud with DeSantis

He fights. He wins.

May 24, 2023

What happened: On March 9, 2022, former Disney CEO Bob Chapek attacked Gov. Ron DeSantis (R., Fla.) for supporting the Parental Rights in Education bill, instigating a feud with the popular governor that persists to this day. Since then, Disney's stock price has lost a third of its value.

By the numbers: Disney stock was trading at $133.65 a share when Chapek accused DeSantis of promoting legislation that would "unfairly target gay, lesbian, nonbinary, and transgender kids and families." Disney shares opened at $89.44 and continued to fall on Wednesday ahead of DeSantis's formal entry into the 2024 presidential campaign.

• That's a decline of 33.1 percent in a little over 14 months.

• Disney announced Wednesday it was preparing to heartlessly fire more than 2,500 employees in an effort to save money.

• DeSantis was reelected in November 2022 by a margin of 19.4 percentage points.

What they're saying: "Ron DeSantis couldn’t beat Donald Duck, how the hell does he think he’s going to fare against Donald Trump?" Nina Turner, the left-activist and failed congressional candidate backed by Bernie Sanders, said on Tuesday.

"You know, if you can’t beat Donald Duck, how are you gonna beat Donald Trump?" Kari Lake, the failed gubernatorial candidate backed by former president Donald Trump, said while attacking DeSantis on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Corporations shouldn't pick fights with politicians, especially not a popular governor who was overwhelmingly reelected last year.

Bottom line: He fights. He wins.