The Economist - UK (2022-04-30)

34 United States The Economist April 30th 2022

vested in China “even aftertheygaveusco­

vid”.  Ads  supporting  Mr  McCormickhave

mined  Dr  Oz’s  tvarchiveforclipsofhim

appearing  with  Michelle Obama, inter­

viewing  a  transgender  childandkissing

his own star on HollywoodBoulevard.

When  the  five  Republicancandidates

debated  in  Harrisburg  onApril25th,only

one,  Jeff  Bartos,  a  businessman,commit­

ted the heresy of implyingthepartyshould

move on from contestingthelegitimacyof

the 2020 election. They bickeredoverwho

had authentic ties to Pennsylvania(DrOzis

a longtime New Jersey resident)andtoMr

Trump. “I’m not going to beout­Pennsyvla­

nian’ed  or  out­America­firstby anybody

on this stage,” Mr McCormicksaid.

With  the  primary  election less than

three weeks away, on May17th,theRepub­

lican  race  is  a  toss­up  betweenDrOzand

Mr  McCormick.  But  Mr  Fettermanis far

ahead of his competitors inthepollsandin

fundraising. The Harvard­educatedsonof

an  insurance  executive,heservedfor 13

years  as  mayor  of  Braddock,atinyPitts­

burgh  suburb  impoverished by the col­

lapse of the steel industry.Asmayorhetat­

tooed one arm with the datesofninemur­

ders during his tenure andbuilta national

profile as an apostle of urbanrevival.

After  a  first  unsuccessfulbid forthe

Senate  in  2016,  Mr  Fetterman won the

largely  ceremonial  post  oflieutenantgo­

vernor  in  2018  and  in  2020further en­

hanced  his  statewide  andnationalimage

among Democrats by defendingtheinteg­

rity  of  the  state’s  vote;  evenhisdogs,Levi

and  Artie,  have  more  than25,000Twitter

followers.  Profiles  of  Mr  Fettermaninthe

national  press  inevitablyemphasise his

preferencefor  shorts  andCarharttouter­

wear instead of suits. gq, a fashionmaga­

zine,  declared  him  “nothinglessthanan

American taste god”. 

To some Pennsylvaniainsiders,MrFet­

terman’s  style  smacks  of gimmick and

even  privilege,  a  disrespecttovotersthat

only a white man could getawaywith.But

there  is  no  doubting  his  appealtoDemo­

crats, particularly in the whiteenclavesof

western  and  central  Pennsylvaniawhere

he has mostly campaigned.Hemanagesto

appear at once unconventionalandsafe.

During  the  debate, Mr Fetterman

looked  ill  at  ease  in  a  suitthatwasbaggy

even  on  his  frame.  Hisopponents con­

firmed his front­runner statusbyattacking

him, and Mr Fetterman, frowningandfur­

rowing  his  brow,  seemedpoorlyprepared

to  explain  himself  or  hispolicies.“You

know it when you see it,” hereplied,when

asked to define what levelofwealthmerit­

ed  higher  taxation.  His  wardrobemaybe

ready  for  the  general­electioncampaign,

but  his  policies  might  yet benefitfrom

some refinement. In this andotherimpor­

tant  ways,  America’s  political future is

playing out in Pennsylvania.n

DeSantisv Disney

Frozen

O

napril22ndDisneyreleaseditslatest

film, “Polar Bear”,timed with Earth

Day.Thedocumentarytracksthelifeofa

femalepolarbeartryingtoraisecubsinthe

Arctic. The film’s debut coincided with

Disney’srelationshipwithFlorida’slead­

ersreachinganew,frigidlow.Thesame

day Ron DeSantis, Florida’s governor,

signedtwobillstakingaimattheenter­

tainmentcompany,a largeemployerinthe

state.ThefeudisrevealingaboutFlorida’s,

andthecountry’s,politicaldirection.

Inthis spring’s legislativesession in

Tallahassee,Republicanlawmakerspriori­

tisedsocialissues.A newlawrestrictscon­

versationsaboutsexualityandgenderori­

entationamongyoungchildreninpublic­

schoolclassroomsandenablesparentsto

sueschooldistrictsiftheybelievethese

provisionsareviolated.SomeofDisney’s

employeesobjectedandurgedthecompa­

nytouseitspresenceandpowerinFlorida.

Thefirm’sboss,BobChapek,publiclyop­

posedthebill,whichsupporterscallthe

“ParentalRightsinEducation”billandcrit­

icshavedubbed“Don’tSayGay”.

MrChapek’smovepromptedMrDeSan­

tis to retaliate against “woke” Disney,

whichhisofficeaccusedofturninga blind

eyetohuman­rightsabusesinChinawhile

pickinga fightinFlorida.Thereprisalwas

two­fold.Onenewlaweliminatesa carve­

out the legislature had granted “theme

parks”lastyearina billthatholdssocial­

mediafirmsresponsiblefordeplatforming

users.Another eliminatesDisney’s“spe­

cial district”, which has enabled it to oper­

ate  autonomously,  with  government­like

powers,  since  1967.  This  includes  owning

its  own  utilities,  investing  in  emergency

services and regulating safety and sanitary

codes.  Some  fear  this  will  place  a  burden

on  Orange  and  Osceola  Counties.  More

likely,  lawmakers  will  pass  new  legisla­

tion, so that the change will not come at a

financial cost to nearby residents.

The  spat  points  to  two  things  worth

watching  in  politics.  One  is  Mr  DeSantis’s

ambition.  In  less  than  four  years  he  has

transitioned from a little­known congress­

man,  who  won  Florida’s  governorship  by

just over 30,000 votes thanks to a surprise

endorsement  from  Donald  Trump,  into  a

perceived  superstar  in  right­wing  circles.

Mr DeSantis is up for re­election this year

and has used the Disney row to elevate his

national profile, linking himself to one of

the  world’s  most  famous  entertainment

brands (even if as an opponent).

Until recently it was widely believed Mr

DeSantis  would  not  run  for  president  in

2024 if Mr Trump did. Some who know the

governor no longer think that remains the

case. His momentum is such that he might

be willing to challenge his original endors­

er  (and  fellow  Florida  resident).  At  fund­

raisers one of the most frequent questions

attendees  ask  is  when  he  is  going  to  an­

nounce his run for the White House.

The  second  political  current  that  the

Disney­DeSantis row points to is how cor­

porate  America  can  no  longer  depend  on

either party for defence. Republicans, who

used  to  be  the  party  that  would  reliably

stand  up  for  business  interests,  are

increasingly  populist  and  willing  to  slam

big firms: witness their repeated attacks on

big tech (a frequent target of Mr DeSantis).

Erstwhile darlings like Disney, which have

offered economic and political sustenance

to Florida, can no longer count on disputes

being resolved amicably.

The irony is that Mr DeSantis has posi­

tioned Florida as a “pro­business” state, so

in this respect his sparring with Disney is

awkward. Might it affect firms’ willingness

to relocate to the state? Many people in the

business  world  see  that  as  unlikely,  be­

cause they understand what is really moti­

vating the governor: a run for the presiden­

cy  in  2024.  If  he  were  more  serious  about

punishing Disney, he might have targeted

the  roughly  $580m  in  credits  to  reduce

state income taxes that Florida offered Dis­

ney in return for moving jobs to the state.

Disney has told its investors that a pro­

vision  in  the  statute  prevents  lawmakers

from changing the special district without

bonds  being  paid  off  first.  “I  think  there

will be a deal cut that lets each of them save

face,” predicts Susan MacManus, a Florida­

watcher at the UniversityofSouth Florida.

It wouldn’t be your usualDisney story if it

didn’t have a happy ending.n

The politics behind the governor of

Florida’s spat with a media juggernaut

Taking the mickey