(This article appeared in the Roanoke Times, Jan. 29, 2023)
Youngkin’s ambition nixes good jobs and Virginia’s trust
Like many rural sections in our nation, southern and southwest Virginia face severe economic challenges. Higher unemployment and greater poverty than the rest of the state have generated frequent pledges by Virginia governors to invest in the region with “game changing projects” to create new jobs at higher wages. But when Ford Motor Co. came knocking on the Commonwealth’s door with a venture that would do just that, a plan to create 2,500 new jobs and generate $3.5 billion by building a battery plant for electric vehicles in the heart of the region, it was rebuffed by a Governor whose gaze seems increasingly focused on the White House and his chief Republican rival for his party’s nomination, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida. In the process, Glenn Youngkin is eschewing a decades-long tradition of bipartisan efforts to create jobs and spur economic growth. And many now wonder if the Commonwealth is creating a new approach that will subject future projects to some ideological litmus test. [Read more…]
