DeSantis takes aim at Bud Light as state pensions crushed by company's decline: 'There's got to be penalties'

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We’re launching an inquiry about Bud Light and InBev: Ron DeSantis

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis shares how he plans to take on Bud Light on Jesse Watters Primetime.

Republican presidential candidate Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state of Florida is launching an inquiry into Bud Light and InBev which, he said, could lead to a lawsuit. The Florida governor told "Jesse Watters Primetime" Thursday that businesses should be penalized for prioritizing "social agendas" over shareholders after Florida pension funds took huge losses due to the beermaker's decline.

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GOV. RON DESANTIS: It has absolutely hurt teachers and other pensioners. … When you start pursuing a political agenda at the expense of your shareholders, that's not just impacting very wealthy people. It impacts hardworking people who were police officers, firefighters and teachers in terms of the pension. So what we're doing, since we do have these shares, we believe that when you take your eye off the ball like that, you're not following your fiduciary duty to do the best you can for your shareholders. So we're going to be launching an inquiry about Bud Light and InBev, and it could be something that leads to a derivative lawsuit filed on behalf of the shareholders of the Florida pension fund. Because at the end of the day, there's got to be penalties for when you put business aside to focus on your social agenda at the expense of hardworking people.

Trans activist Dylan Mulvaney (left) and Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (right). (Associated Press)

DeSantis is asking the head of the State Board of Administration (SBA) to review its holdings of AB InBev, citing the ongoing decline of its subsidiary company Bud Light. 

In a letter sent to SBA Executive Director Lamar Taylor, DeSantis speculated that AB InBev may have "breached legal duties" to its shareholders by partnering with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney and pushing "radical social ideologies." 

"It has come to my attention that the State Board of Administration (SBA) currently holds global equity assets with Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev)," the governor wrote in the Thursday letter. "As you well know, AB InBev's performance has plummeted since its decision to associate its Bud Light brand with radical social ideologies. That fateful decision has transformed America's formerly best-selling beer — and one of InBev's best-performing assets — into a commercial pariah. InBev's losses have been staggering." 

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Data from Evercore ISI shows that in the 12-week period leading up to July 2, Bud Light’s sales volume fell by 27.1% over that timeframe – which includes much of the aftermath following Mulvaney’s early April social media post showing the custom can Bud Light provided her with.

In that same period, rival light beers saw sales rise. Coors Light's sales volume rose by 17.8%, while Miller Lite’s increased by 14.3% and Corona Light’s ticked up by 3%. 

The fallout from the Bud Light controversy has spilled over into other Anheuser-Busch InBev beers which have also suffered from sales declines. 

FOX Business' Timothy Nerozzi contributed to this report.

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