Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been outed as the man inside the Mickey Mouse costume at Walt Disney World on Wednesday evenings. The revelation comes amid DeSantis’ very public battles with Disney over the company’s opposition to his “Parental Rights in Education” bill, also known as the "Don't Say Gay" bill.
According to whistleblowers, every Wednesday after the park closes, DeSantis sheds his suit and tie in favor of a pair of oversized yellow shoes and red shorts. “Ron loves playing Mickey,” said a Disney employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “He practices the voice and walks around saying ‘That sure is swell!’ and ‘Golly gee!’ He really gets into the role.”
The employee said that DeSantis’s weekly transformations have been going on for years but took on new meaning recently as his disputes with Disney escalated. “At first it just seemed like a quirky hobby, but now it’s clear the Wednesday Mickey thing is some kind of weird coping mechanism for Ron to work through his Disney issues after being humiliated by them.”
Reached for comment about his boss’s double life as the signature Disney character, DeSantis’s spokesperson said, "The Governor categorically denies any involvement with Walt Disney World in an official capacity or otherwise.”
But the whistleblowers claim DeSantis’s Mickey Mouse antics are an open secret among Disney World staff. “When Ron stomps around in those big shoes yelling ‘Hot dog,’ we all just look the other way,” one said. “The dude needs to blow off some steam. Who are we to judge how the Governor of Florida chooses to do that? Still, it does feel a bit cartoonish."
There is no word yet on how DeSantis’s new notoriety as Mickey Mouse might impact his disputes with his corporate nemesis. But aides privately worry that, with his secret now out, the Governor’s Wednesdays will never be the same.