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GOP Governor Larry Hogan Calls Florida’s Parental Rights Bill ‘Absurd’

(Screenshot/Rumble/State of the Union)

Nicole Silverio Media Reporter
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Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan called Florida’s newly passed parental rights legislation “absurd” during a Sunday interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the “Parental Rights in Education” bill into law Monday, which prohibits instruction surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 classrooms and requires school districts to notify parents about any changes to their child’s physical, mental and emotional health, except in cases of child abuse.

“The whole thing seems like … just a crazy fight,” Hogan said. “It concerns me that DeSantis is always talking about [how] he was not demanding businesses to do things but he was telling the cruise lines what they had to do, he was telling local schools what they had to be mandating and now he wants to criticize Disney for expressing how they feel about that bill. I mean, they have every right to, we have a thing called Freedom of Speech … I think the bill was kind of absurd, and not something that would’ve happened in our state.”

Disney publicly condemned the legislation in a Monday statement with calls to repeal the law and support their LGBTQ employees. (RELATED: Gov. DeSantis Calls Out Disney For Supporting ‘Sexualizing Kindergarteners’ And ‘Lining Their Pockets’ Off The CCP) 

“Florida’s HB 1557, also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed into law. Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that,” the statement said. ““We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country.”

DeSantis warned Friday that Disney’s “wokeness” will “destroy the country” following the release of a leaked video showcasing the company’s plan to incorporate more “queer leads” in their films. The Florida governor announced his intention to strip “special privileges” given to Disney under the 1967 Reedy Creek Improvement Act, which made land owned by the company a “special taxing district.”

Opponents have dubbed the legislation the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, though it does not indicate that school administrators or students are prohibited from using the term “gay.” In protest, Florida Democrats and celebrities have repeatedly chanted the word “gay” to express opposition.