| Politics has a number of fascinating splits these days, especially between sides that normally get along. Here's what's happening — and, as best we can understand it, why. Republicans vs. Disney  Disney cast member Nicholas Maldonado protests how long it took Disney to oppose Florida's new LGBTQ legislation during a March employee walkout at Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP) | In Florida, Republicans and Disney normally go hand in hand, reports The Post's Lori Rozsa. Disney lobbyists are pretty cozy with the party, since it controls much of the state. But ever since Disney's CEO — pushed by his employees — spoke out about Florida's law restricting discussion of LGBTQ topics in schools, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has attacked Disney with fervor. "I think that crossed the line," DeSantis said of the company's criticism of the legislation. Now, Disney has become a lightning rod on the right, with conservative leaders on social media and Fox News hosts declaring it as "woke" and even the enemy. Why so much hate for Disney? Culture wars — especially when waged against big corporations — have become surefire wins on the right, said Carlos Curbelo, a former Republican congressman from Florida. "With the tea party, the Republican Party began acquiring an anti-establishment streak," he said. "The 2016 Trump campaign and presidency solidified the GOP as a counterculture, anti-establishment political movement." From the perspective of DeSantis — who likely wants to run for president in 2024 — Disney is "the ultimate establishment that has recently embraced a more progressive agenda," said Curbelo. It's a slam dunk to go after them. Republicans vs. NATO When Donald Trump was president, he went after the ultimate Western establishment: the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, an alliance of some 30 countries. A top aide in the Trump White House said recently that as president, Trump had wanted to leave NATO altogether. (That sounds like Trump, who pulled out of the World Health Organization, the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal.) Republican lawmakers at the time, writes The Post's Aaron Blake, had no intention of backing out of or dismantling NATO, and they affirmed as much with votes in Congress rebuking Trump. But last week, Blake notes, 30 percent of House Republicans voted against a symbolic resolution reaffirming U.S. support for NATO. Their reasons are varied, but it does seem that the right's more apologist attitude toward Russia — led by Trump — aligns with skepticism of NATO. That's happening just as more European countries have expressed interest in joining the alliance in the face of Russian aggression. Vulnerable Democrats vs. Biden, on immigration  Jason, a 3-year-old migrant from Guatemala, stands next to his father as they are questioned by a Border Patrol agent on April 7 after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States. (Adrees Latif/Reuters) | Next month, the Biden administration plans to end a controversial Trump-era border policy that allowed the government to ship migrants back home immediately, rather than letting them apply for asylum and stay in the United States. During the pandemic, Trump instituted a federal health order that cites the pandemic as a public health reason to bar people from entering the United States. It's known as Title 42. With the pandemic easing somewhat, keeping Title 42 in place has become untenable for the administration. Plus, liberals hated it. But a number of Democrats up for reelection in purple or red states actually want Title 42 to stay in place for at least a while longer, and they have criticized President Biden for getting rid of it. They fear — and they're probably right — that migrants will start coming to the border en masse in the hopes of applying for asylum. And that Republicans will blame Democrats for the chaos, since, as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) likes to say, Democrats are the ones in charge right now in Washington. Democrats vs. liberals on police reform As the midterms near, Biden has been sending a certain message every chance he gets: Democrats want to fund the police. Two years ago, after police murdered George Floyd, liberal calls to defund the police and implement sweeping criminal justice system reform got loud, and got lots of attention. Not a lot of national Democrats jumped on board, and that activist effort has since fallen off — or failed when put to voters. But Democrats from Biden on down worry that they'll get dinged at the polls again, as the party that wants to cut down on police spending. That's especially problematic as crime rates rise and Republicans find ways to accuse Democrats of being soft on crime. So, looking ahead to future elections, Democrats are calling for more resources for law enforcement, Politico reports. Biden did the same recently in his proposed budget to Congress. But what Democratic strategists tell me is good politics for the party right now has generated fears among civil rights activists that Democrats have all but abandoned efforts to tamp down on police brutality. | 
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