Marriage of Low-Tax Business Republicans and Religious Whackos is on the Rocks

I suppose it goes back the roughly the time of Reagan. Corporate low-tax lobbyists made backroom deals with anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage lobbyists. The Corporate people said, "Look, we don't care one way or another about religion. We just want less regulation and lower taxes." The religious people said, "Great, we don't care about taxes or regulation of corporations, we just want government regulate what individual people do in their otherwise private lives. If our morals and religious beliefs are law we don't have to persuade people. They just have to follow our laws."  

This deal worked great until very recently. Now it is in trouble. The Governor of Florida and Presidential candidate, Desantes, has declared Disney to be the enemy. Tax breaks, smiled upon in past times by both business and religion, are being cancelled. How could a deal so sweet fall on hard times?

Looking at it another way, how could it NOT fail? Corporate types did not understand religious zealotry. In religion zealotry, there are no limits the degree of perfection and conformity. When one demand is met a higher one is demanded. Once abortion clinics are closed, women seeking abortions elsewhere need to be pursued. Once women seeking abortions have been conquered, birth control must be stopped. Then working outside the home must be stopped. Disney needs women. They are half the market for sales and half the pool of employees.

Corporations thought there were limits to the religious zealotry. Now they are learning what many of us knew beforehand. The demands of religious whackos are never satisfied. The old adage, give them an inch, they will take a mile applies.

Today, we hear politicians catering to the religious saying big corporations need to be reigned in. They need more regulation. They are referring to Disney's choice to offer entertainment themes that include positive images of gay and trans people. Disney, on the other hand, sees opportunity in marketing to the audience of gays, trans and supporters. Disney's instinct to go after markets ignored by other is legendary. It knows its business. 

Where this goes politically will be fascinating to watch.