Vox Sentences - How Disney outmaneuvered DeSantis

Disney takes back self-governing power from DeSantis; Russia jails American journalist on espionage charges.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin.

Disney just dodged DeSantis

Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

• The board Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis picked to oversee Disney World’s special tax district is threatening legal action after its predecessors stripped it of power. [Vox / Nicole Narea]
• Just before a state takeover, Disney pushed through agreements to extend its control over development and buildings in the central Florida theme park for decades. [Orlando Sentinel / Skyler Swisher]
• The move marks the latest in a series of clashes between Disney and DeSantis as he wages culture wars on so-called “woke” corporations ahead of an expected White House run in 2024. [CNN / Steve Contorno]
• DeSantis replaced Disney’s board with his appointees after the company publicly opposed a 2022 law that prohibits classroom discussions of gender expression and sexual identity through third grade. [Insider / Lloyd Lee]
• The new board claims Disney’s agreement subverts the will of Florida voters. However, Disney maintains it followed appropriate guidelines and held public meetings on the policy. [Washington Post / Bryan Pietsch and Aaron Gregg]

📍 If you read just one story

A federal judge on Thursday struck down an Affordable Care Act provision which required health care providers to cover a wide range of preventive services.  [Vox / Ian Millhiser]

Russia holds US journalist on espionage charges

• Russian security services arrested Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich on spying charges, saying that he tried to collect sensitive information. [Associated Press]
• Russia’s FSB claims the accredited reporter was acting on US orders to obtain the Kremlin’s military secrets. The Journal denied the charges and called for his immediate release. [CNN]
• Gershkovich is the first American journalist held for espionage since the Cold War; his arrest comes amid escalating tension between Russia and the US over the war in Ukraine. [NBC News / Chantal Da Silva]
• A Russian court ordered Gershkovich to remain in custody until May 29. The US condemned the decision and renewed calls for Americans to leave Russia. [NPR]

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Thursday, a 40-car train carrying ethanol and other hazardous chemicals derailed in Raymond, Minnesota, forcing resident evacuations. [Vox / Li Zhou]

• Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro arrived in Brazil on Thursday to lead the right-wing opposition after spending three months in Florida. [Reuters / Anthony Boadle and Ricardo Brito]
• At least 31 people were killed and dozens injured in the Philippines after a ferry carrying 250 passengers caught fire overnight. [Washington Post / Regine Cabato and Rebecca Tan]
• House Republicans on Thursday passed legislation to intensify US oil drilling and reverse President Joe Biden’s climate agenda. It’s unlikely to pass the Senate. [CBS News]

“This board loses, for practical purposes, the majority of its ability to do anything beyond maintain the roads and maintain basic infrastructure.”

[DeSantis board member Ron Peri on Disney’s new agreement / Orlando Sentinel]

Medicaid's Great Unwinding

On April 1, 2023, a Covid-era Medicaid policy called continuous enrollment will expire. Now that that’s coming to an end, state Medicaid offices need to audit their enrollees. But that process isn’t so simple, and millions are expected to slip through the cracks. Vox senior correspondent Dylan Scott explains.

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