Two new reports are bringing Ron DeSantis’s counter-attack against Disney into full view after the Mouse attempted a last-minute coup attempt.

The Walt Disney Company, which had enjoyed self-governing status for decades in Florida, was recently stripped of that right, leaving a state-appointed board overseeing the special district. Before the transfer of power occurred, though, the old board colluded with the multinational corporation to kneecap the new board, signing agreements that essentially gave Disney unlimited development power within the 27,000 acres it owns.

For the moment, it seemed as if DeSantis had been outmaneuvered, but as I said at the time, anyone doubting that the Florida governor didn’t have a plan to follow through hasn’t been paying attention the last four years.

Long story short, this war is nowhere near over, and I’d still be placing my money on the State of Florida to prevail. Anyone pretending that DeSantis was “owned” here is just playing politics. Disney was always going to try to use the old board to get its way before the new board came in. Now, they’ll have to defend possible violations of the law in front of a GOP-friendly Florida court system. Good luck to them because they’ll need it.

DeSantis immediately commissioned a report to ascertain the legality of the old board’s move, and that is already paying dividends. According to The Federalist, a major problem was found that will likely nuke Disney’s attempt to circumvent the will of Floridians.

In early April, DeSantis ordered an investigation into Disney’s last-minute power grab. A source familiar with the investigation revealed to The Federalist that Disney skipped key steps when amending its developmental agreement, rendering the resolution null and void.

According to Florida statute, local governments — in this case, the Reedy Creek board — are required to take three steps when making changes to special district agreements such as the one that established Disney’s quasi-governmental status. They must hold two public hearings, advertise those hearings in a local newspaper, and offer notice by mail to “all affected property owners before the first public hearing.”

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The last requirement of Florida law, however, that all affected property owners be given notice by mail, was skipped entirely, according to sources familiar with Disney’s proceedings. The missed mandate means the company would have to restart the process for its 11th-hour resolution to be valid.

To summarize, there are three provisions that must be followed before any changes can be made to the special district. Disney did two of those, though they were very coy in what they were planning despite making public “announcements.” Yet, it’s the third requirement, which is sending mail-outs to all affected property owners, that is going to be an issue. Why? Because Disney simply didn’t do it.

DeSantis isn’t going to leave things to a legal interpretation, though. He’s also making moves with the legislature to fight back (The New York Post).

“What they tried to do is an embarrassment,” a senior administration source told The Post. “The narrative the left is spinning is that Gov. DeSantis was outmaneuvered. But this is far from over, and he’s going to have the last laugh.”

DeSantis, 44, is set to announce plans by the state Legislature to void a controversial move by Disney that effectively stripped the governor’s newly installed oversight board of authority, sources said.

Officials called Disney’s tactic an illegal “poison pill” intended to undercut state supervision of its special tax district — and argued that the secret maneuver would be subject to swift legislative reversal.

“They got used to doing whatever they wanted for far too long,” one source said. “Not this time.

It looks like Disney got too cute by half, and that’s bad news for them because they’ve now poisoned the well. There was some possibility that had they played nicely with the new board, the company would still be able to garner concessions on major projects. That opportunity is now gone, destroyed by an out-sized hubris egged on by the mainstream press. Good luck to Disney because they are going to need it.