Senator Rick Scott has shared that he visited a Disney theme park with his family in what appears to be a stark change of tune in his attitude toward the entertainment company.
The Republican from Florida previously slated Disney in a 2022 opinion piece, writing: “Disney used to be the happiest place on Earth, now it’s just woke central,” and added that he wouldn’t visit the park or watch Disney “anytime soon.”
The move appeared to come in response to the news outlet TMZ’s shame campaign against members of Congress who are on vacation while the partial closure of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues.
Scott wrote in a post shared on his X account on Saturday: “Hey TMZ. Yes, I’m at Disney with my grandkids. Should we be in D.C.? Yes! But I don’t get to make that decision,” including a photo of him, his wife Ann, and his granddaughter at a Disney theme park.
Newsweek contacted Scott via email outside of regular working hours for comment.
Why It Matters
In 2022, Scott tore into Disney in an op-ed, saying that “polling shows that fewer than 25 percent of Americans share the extreme views that Disney has endorsed.” He added: “It’s time for companies like Disney to wake up and ignore the Twitter-obsessed social media manager who is driving business strategy.”
In an interview with Fox News that same year, he also said he “got rid of my Disney+” and that he was “not planning on going back to the park.”
Scott is not the first critic of Disney to say the entertainment company is “woke,” and it has gathered a significant amount of reproval from conservatives over the years, such as over the release of the 2025 movie Snow White, due to the casting of a Latina actor as the titular character; and the use of CGI to reimagine the seven dwarfs.
Meanwhile, the company’s biggest fans seem to be in agreement that Disney should take a political stand on important issues, and promote inclusivity.
What To Know
Scott’s post, shared on social media on Saturday, accumulated more than 3.5 million views by Sunday morning. TMZ has also since responded to Scott’s remarks, digging into the senator for being on holiday while the federal government remains partially shut down.
“True, the leadership told members to skedaddle out of D.C., but what about the last two months, when NO ONE would bend, no one would compromise, and the victims were the people who hadn’t gotten a paycheck in six weeks?” the news outlet wrote in response to Scott’s jibe.
TMZ also wrote in a post on X: “Rick Scott posted a pic of his family having a good ol’ time at Disney World in Florida, challenging TMZ for posting pics of members of Congress on vacay while thousands of federal workers go unpaid. Well, challenge accepted.”
The news outlet has been hitting out at various lawmakers, posting photos of various members of Congress on holiday while the DHS continues to be shut down, leaving thousands of essential federal workers to work without pay.
Representative Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California, was one of the lawmakers TMZ outed, as was Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, as well as a number of others.
What People Are Saying
Scott’s post has also got social media users talking—many of them surprised that the lawmaker appeared to U-turn on his previously strong views about Disney. “That’s a pretty sharp pivot,” one user wrote. Another said: “Guys they say one thing and then do another, it’s kind of their thing.”
One X user said: “Four years of standing firm against woke Disney, undone by one grandkid who wanted to see Mickey.”
Others shared memes and GIFs, with one posting a GIF of a weighing scale with the word “Hypocrisy” written in the middle, and the needle pointing at the far end of the scale.
Some users also applauded TMZ for its reporting, with one user saying the outlet was doing “God’s work.”
Read the full article here
