Full-court press from team for DeSantis campaign
The Orlando Magic decided to jump head-first into the most heated political campaign in America — with a $50,000 donation to Ron DeSantis’ PAC.
This might actually be a good omen for Donald Trump, Joe Biden and the other candidates, since the Magic aren’t exactly known for picking winners. The team has lost for about a decade straight now.
In the past, the Magic have cut plenty of small-ball checks to state and local politicians who were in positions to do them favors, often for $500 a pop. But nothing this big. And rarely to a politician who’s as much of a lightning rod as DeSantis — a guy who has raged against many of the very values the Magic claim to support, at least when trying to sell tickets.
The team, for instance, preaches the value of diversity, equality and inclusion, as many NBA teams do, and even employs a “chief officer” for DEI. DeSantis, on the other hand, has crusaded against DEI as if the concept was spawned by Satan himself.
The Magic also frequently express their support for LGBTQ issues, even hosting Pride Nights, while DeSantis is the father of Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay”/“Parental Rights” bill.
For the record: I believe the team has a right to donate to whomever it wants. The public also has a right to know about those donations. And to react accordingly.
I’ve never subscribed to Laura Ingraham’s demeaning “Shut up and dribble” philosophy that sports figures have no right to enter the political arena. I think LeBron James has as much right as Ingraham or any other American to tell the world what he thinks.
But most teams choose not to contribute directly to polarizing politicians, because they don’t want to alienate their fans or tick off their players.
And in this case, it’s a team that plays in a taxpayer-financed arena whose boosters are now asking for another $250 million for upgrades.
Federal records show the DeSantis campaign received the check June 26. But the team said it cut the check May 19 — the day after it was reported that DeSantis was officially launching the presidential campaign everyone already knew he was running.
Team spokesman Joel Glass said the team donated “in support of a Florida governor for the continued prosperity of Central Florida,” but said the club wouldn’t answer questions about where it stood on the governor’s highest-profile and most controversial policies.
And that’s what can get companies into trouble — when they try to play all sides. Just ask Disney.
Disney, as you may recall, also used to tout its commitment to diversity and inclusion, putting out rainbow Mickeys in an attempt to get LGBTQ customers to fill its parks.
But then this newspaper revealed that, at the same time, Disney was financing the campaigns of the lawmakers who had led the fight against gay marriage and gay adoption — and to every single sponsor of the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
After that, customers, employees and even a Disney family member raised so much hell that Disney vowed to stop cutting campaign checks in Florida altogether.
I think people can respect organizations that have firm principles one way or the other — but not those trying to play both sides. (We love the LGBTQ community. We just also fund the politicians who demonize them.)
It’s possible local team execs were just following the orders of the team’s conservative owners, the DeVos family. But whoever made the final call wanted this community to know that the team itself — “your Orlando Magic,” as the team likes to call itself — wants Ron DeSantis as America’s Culture-Warrior-in-Chief.
Frankly, I’m not sure this donation will affect the team in the long run.
Often the people who get loudest on social media about boycotting companies weren’t loyal customers to begin with.
And the team has managed to lumber along while consistently losing.
Plus, while DeSantis may not be popular in the Magic’s home county of Orange where he lost by about 30,000 votes, he still seems popular statewide.
For the record, state records show the team has cut two checks for $25,000 in the past — one to the Republican Party of Florida in 2006 and one last year to a committee controlled by State Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, the GOP lawmaker behind the state’s controversial immigration bill.
Most of the rest have been much smaller and gone primarily to GOP politicians and committees.
But the team has also cut checks to Democrats like Buddy Dyer, Darren Soto and even some $5,000 checks to the Florida Democratic Party back in the 2000s when Democrats still had a tiny bit of influence in Tallahassee.
Basically, you get the impression that Magic CEO Alex Martins would give $500 to anyone, including an opposing team’s mascot, if he thought the fluffy fellow could do the team a favor.
While team officials didn’t want to say much about its political donations, they did want to remind folks that they make lots of charitable contributions to local nonprofits.
I’m well aware. I’ve written about them many times.
In fact, I’ve often mused that the Magic get way more publicity, dollar-for-dollar, than most philanthropists who give much more money and do so quietly.
But yes, Orlando Magic, everyone’s watching your donations now.