In an earlier post I pointed out Amazon’s major competitive advantage in capturing government giveaways.
One of these skills must be captivating media outlets that used to be reliable sources for anger against tax cuts if they help big business, irrespective of whether they help everyone else.
My newsletter today discusses how media completely changed their tune on tax cuts for large corporations when that large corporation is Amazon. Suddenly there’s no tax giveaway too large for them!
I conclude with another reminder to our policymakers and media to promote empirically proven ways of growing the economy:
North Carolina’s leaders have cut taxes, spending, and red tape. Those are empirically backed policies, so it is no wonder that as the state has lowered the cost of doing business here in general, we’ve seen greater growth, jobs, and investment.
It’s worked so well that now North Carolina is considered a national model for tax reform.
Those reforms work like economic incentives, but not at the expense of the rest of the taxpayers, existing businesses, and job seekers. So it’s not a shell game.
But it also doesn’t present politicians with the opportunity to be lauded at ribbon-cutting ceremonies and feted with awards from cash-flush recipients of their targeted incentives.
Cutting taxes and red tape for all is an all-comers incentive.
That means it’s good for untold numbers of business ventures, jobs, and investment across the state. Most of them get overlooked because 99 percent of all businesses are small businesses, sole proprietorships, and “Mom & Pop” ventures. They create jobs and power the economy — but they do it quietly.
They don’t create the big splashy headlines when they do, but their impressive effects become evident over time.
Here’s the rub: If the media, the governor, and legislative leaders believe that North Carolina’s taxes are too high for the likes of Amazon, then they’re too high for Mom & Pop, too.
It’s a good thing that Gov. Cooper and our media so clearly recognize that tax cuts would stimulate investment, job creation, and economic growth here. Here’s hoping they will make the logical next step and promote tax cuts across the board, not just for the largest corporation they can find.
